


King of Pirates

by jennie_annie, Mazauric



Series: JE Kingdoms [1]
Category: Johnny's Entertainment, KAT-TUN (Band), NewS (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-02
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2018-11-08 03:10:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 82,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11072838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jennie_annie/pseuds/jennie_annie, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mazauric/pseuds/Mazauric
Summary: Once upon a time, shit happened.





	1. Chapter 1

**ONCE UPON A TIME...**

 

The walls are wet with the water dripping from the grates overhead. Rainwater drips endlessly over moss and brick, landing in puddles on the concrete floor of the dungeon. It hardly disturbs the occupant. The lone occupant sits in a cold, dark, small cell of his own. The only light provided is the light from the grate above him that leaves him vulnerable to the elements outside.

Chains are clamped, rusty and cold, over his thin wrists. Dirt clings all over his skin, darkening it save for the tear tracks running down his cheeks. His eyes are dull with defeat, black hair curled and wavy with dampness from the rain and neglect. A red number stains his neck, still painful to the touch as it identifies him by number and not name.

Prisoner 19840704.

His lips are dry, parted slightly with the effort of breathing—of staying sane, staying in control of his thoughts.

His name is Akanishi Jin. One wouldn’t guess it, given the state of how he looks, but he is a king. Raised a king. Hailed a king. Loved as a king for twenty-six years.

A drip from the grate above drops onto his shoulder and he barely flinches. His mind is far away, thinking over and over; wondering how he got here. What he did. What he could have done differently. What went wrong. Who he trusted and who he shouldn’t have.

The fact of the matter is that he has been sitting in this prison for three days and he still doesn’t quite know how he got here. He has a fairly solid idea of where he’d gone wrong, but it’s nothing more than a suspicion on his part. There’s a worry that he might reveal himself if he’s left to his thoughts for too long. That he might give his captors the evidence they need by worrying too much.

How can he not? He’s supposed to be sitting on his throne not sitting in a cage.

Faces flash before his mind. Faces of people he’d known and of  people he’d called his friends, his family. One he’d trusted. One he’d loved.

Jin’s hands shake and he closes his eyes. That’s probably what hurts the most, that he can see this face—see his smile and not know where he is at this very moment. _They_ won’t answer him. They won’t tell him no matter how many times he asks and begs them.

Did they capture him too? Did they kill him? What did they do with his crew? What are they going to do to him?

He twitches and looks up when he hears a click of heels on the cold concrete. The sound echoes along the cells and Jin moves back just a little. He watches his captor, his guard, appear before him and stop gracefully in front of his cage.

“Take the prisoner to the courtroom,” she says, her voice cold and Jin notices her lipstick first. It’s difficult to see her face, obscured by the stiff, structured green guard uniform she wears and the backlight from the hallway that shadows her body.

His cage opens and Jin feels himself being lifted and walked out, forced by something cold and unfeeling. He can’t see who is moving him but he knows what they are. They are the guards of the dungeons, the invisible and dangerous guards that have long guarded these cursed halls.

The sudden brightness of the hallway hurts his eyes after the dark of his cell. He walks as they force him and hears her shoes echo and click along the cells as they drag him out and up the flights of stairs that follow. Up and up and up until at last he’s somewhere warmer, somewhere more familiar.

He recognises the walls first, golden tapestry proudly displaying the island crest in black and gold stitching. The polished marble floors shine golden under natural light as he is dragged out into the courtroom and pushed into a chair facing everyone—the people he rules and the council who rules him. The eyes of them all are watching him. Judging him. Condemning him guilty before he even knows what he’s guilty of.

He looks up at the sea of people. The sea of faces that aren’t on his side and he feels the chains tighten around his wrists at his back. Jin closes his eyes tightly and remembers an easier time when he was in this courtroom.

-

The sun shines down on the courtroom, warming the citizens and royalty that they follow. Advisors look on, silent and solemn in black. Their eyes follow a boy, barely a teenager, in baggy red and black garments and a golden crown upon his head. His hair was lighter back then with almost a golden tinge that shines and glints under the light of the sun.

The people bow as he passes, his robe leaving a train behind him. He is their King. Their Royal Protector. The boy they’ll follow to the end of the earth and the blood of royalty runs through his veins.

The advisors and people watch as the young king of thirteen years old walks up the steps of the courtroom and to his throne. He turns and sits, almost obediently. The advisors, they don’t smile, don’t speak and don’t move, but the fact that they haven’t done anything means they’re pleased and he knows that.

“Bow to our Royal Protector,” the announcer demands. “Our King of the Elements, of the Realm and Sea, of the West and Beyond, Akanishi Jin!”

They bow and Jin’s smile is warmer than the sun above them.

It’s only hours later that Jin escapes. Ditching his crown and royal garments for ragged, ripped up clothes and bandanas. He giggles as he grabs the royal jester on his way out and runs through the hallowed halls of the castle, escaping out through the back entrance.

A guard goes to stop him and is halted with a cold hand on his shoulder.

The advisor who stops him says nothing. Advisors don’t talk. Not to anyone but the King. But his cold eyes watch Jin running off and he turns to go back into the castle without a word.

“Koki, are they following us?” Jin asks as he skids down to the marketplace and drags the jester behind him.

Tanaka Koki, the royal jester and joker, whips his head around to check.

“None so far.”

He’s younger than Jin, just a little shorter too. Where Jin had been born into the role of becoming the king, Koki had once had the choice not to be the royal jester. He was born a commoner, like so many of the subjects Jin ruled over. Koki had appeared in the castle at a young age and signed his name to the royal register early. His job then became to make the King laugh and Jin found pleasure in continually getting his jester in trouble by running away with him.

Koki’s bright eyes look over the villagers and he pushes his dark hair out of his face. He’s not even breathless from the run as he grabs Jin’s wrist and drags him into the crowd. “Come on.”

Jin follows. The children are barely noticed. Though Jin is their King, the villagers hardly take notice of the scruffy and ragged children who rush past their knees, ducking into alleys, and running with the single-minded intent of getting as far away from the castle as possible. Jin follows Koki past cobblestone paths and narrowly packed houses that reek of damp clothing and dog.

They follow the scent of fish and salt out towards the docks where the boats line the harbour. Jin and Koki run out onto the wooden boardwalk, both of them not once stopping for air or directions as they know exactly where they’re going.

The men wandering the docks barely notice the two children as they pick the largest, darkest ship and rush up the landing to board it. They land on the wooden plank, boards creaking under their steps as they duck past the adults walking the decks and climb deep into the storage hull below.

Jin stifles his giggles as he follows Koki towards the crates that line the storage area. They look around, eyes gleefully raking in their pick of the litter before Koki spots the crate that probably has what they’re looking for.

“There.” He points at the kanji corresponding to their aim and Jin scrambles after Koki to reach the crate and pull it open.

There inside, glinting under the dim lights, is at least 100 casks of alcohol—untouched, pristine, filled to the brim, and waiting just for them.

Koki beams. “Told you it was a shipment coming in today!”

“When you’re right, you’re right!” Jin laughs and reaches in to grab a bottle. “Let’s get—”

There’s a small noise and the two of them freeze on the spot. Jin can feel the tip of something sharp poking into his side and Koki has sensed, rather than seen, the presence of a third person in the storage area.

Slowly, the two of them turn around to see a small boy, smaller than both of them. He’s dressed in black and red. A red shirt lies underneath a black vest and his neck is donned with at least five, shiny silver and black necklaces of all sorts. His black pants are a little baggy on him and both his wrists are riddled with bangles, bracelets, and leather straps. His dark hair falls in soft tresses over the most beautifully innocent, albeit furious, brown eyes Jin’s ever seen.

He’s tiny and fierce and the sword he holds in his steady hand is poking Jin’s side.

“I don’t think pirates take kindly to thieves,” the boy says in a quiet tone. “Especially amateurs.”

“Pirates?” Koki questions.

The boy, despite being tinier than both of them, wields a considerable amount of force behind his eyes and that’s the only reason Jin and Koki haven’t attacked him yet. It’s two against one but the boy threatens enough with his stance, his tone, and his eyes. He’s serious and he could really hurt Jin without breaking a sweat.

“Whose ship did you think you were on?” the boy mocks Koki. “There’s no legal company ship that can bring in that much alcohol in one shipment without stealing it. If you didn’t realise that, you’re both idiots.”

“Watch who you’re calling idiots,” Koki growls, fury rising despite the very real threat coming from the small boy’s sword. “You’re talking to the King of this Realm!”

That doesn’t change anything, the boy keeps his sword on Jin and clicks his tongue. “Well then, a Royal Idiot,” he corrects himself and takes a calculated step back. It’s almost graceful, how he carries himself. “Step down from the boxes and keep your hands off those bottles.”

Jin glances at Koki before silently, obediently dropping the bottle back into the crate and slowly climbing down with Koki close behind him. The two of them face the boy who is still armed and pointing his sword at them.

Jin can’t resist but ask the blunt question. “Who are you?”

The boy smirks. “I’m a pirate and you’re trying to steal what I’ve rightfully stolen.”

“A pirate,” Koki scoffs in disbelief. “You?!”

The boy’s eyes flash with rage but he doesn’t stop pointing his sword at Jin. Clearly he’s figured out that Jin is the most important of his two hostages so he keeps the threat on him.

“Okay,” Jin says, trying to be logical instead. “What do we need to do to convince you to let us go?”

The boy looks between the two of them and Jin feels a small sense of relief as he realises the boy hasn’t actually thought this far ahead. He tilts his head. “Perhaps we could—”

“Stay where you are,” the boy threatens, his sword digging closer into Jin’s shoulder.

Jin winces and holds his hands up. “Okay, okay,” he relents. “I won’t move.”

“Kazuya?” an adult voice echoes from the decks above.

The boy, Jin, and Koki look up to see a man peek his head in and take in the scene. “Kazuya,” he says as he comes down the steps and looks over Jin and Koki curiously. “What are you doing?”

“I caught these two stealing,” the boy, Kazuya, explains. He turns his eyes back to Jin. “And they sucked at it obviously.”

The man chuckles fondly and ruffles Kazuya’s hair. He turns back to Jin and Koki. “So you’ve got them in a holding position then? Good boy, good boy.”

The man rounds them and Jin notices the glint of a golden coin at his side. It has the markings of a skull in the middle and his breath hitches as he recognises the symbol right away. So the two of them are pirates. What are they doing at the docks?

“Well, they’re young still,” the man observes and turns to Kazuya. “Let ‘em go.”

Kazuya falters and he looks at the man like he’s lost his mind. “But dad—”

“Now, now, Kazuya.” The man waves his hand in dismissal. “You can hardly expect me to approve of you killing the King of this Realm, now can you? This isn’t like when we docked on V6 territory.”

Kazuya groans, he glares at Jin and Koki but reluctantly withdraws his sword and sheaths it.

“Good boy,” the man tells him. “Now, see them off and make sure they don’t get lost.”

“Yes, father,” Kazuya grumbles, he rounds his eyes on the two of them. “Come on.”

Jin doesn’t know exactly what happened and he’s not willing to stick around and ask either. He bows hastily to the man who’d let them go and follows behind Kazuya with Koki close behind him. The small boy leads them back up onto the main deck before taking them down the gangway and onto the docks.

Jin glances at the sword dangling at Kazuya’s side. His advisors won’t let him have a real one yet. They won’t even let him have guns. He’s stuck with wooden swords and simulators that are a piss poor attempt at lulling him into a false sense of power when really they’re just placating his childish whims.

Kazuya finally turns around and faces them .“That way”—he points down the road—“and if I see you near the rum again, I will poke one of your eyes out.”

“Pretty tough talk for a mini-pirate,” Koki scoffs, his eyes looking Kazuya up and down with amusement.

There’s that flash again, that fury in Kazuya that could command an army. He rounds on Koki. “Like I said, if I see you around here again, I’m going to take an eye. It’s probably going to be yours.”

“You’re a real pirate?” Jin asks, hardly bothered by the tiny boy threatening his jester. “Like, really a pirate?”

Kazuya sighs and shakes his head. “Anyway, just go and don’t get lost, _Your Highness_. I won’t be arrested for getting the King killed by his own stupidity.”

He brushes past Koki and Jin and he’s halfway up the plank when Jin notices what he has in his hand.

“Wait, is that…?”

Kazuya takes a swig from the rum bottle and Jin doesn’t even know when Kazuya swiped it from the crates. The boy turns around and swallows with a satisfied grin. He then pulls a silver bracelet from his pocket and dangles it in front of him.

Koki and Jin recognise the item right away by the little green and red jewels embedded into the silver and the telltale ‘KT’ at the end. It’s Koki’s bracelet. Koki checks his right wrist and, sure enough, it’s not there anymore.

“Hey!” Koki yells, face red with rage. “Give it back!”

“Steal it off me,” Kazuya challenges him as he puts the stolen item back in his pocket and takes another swig of the alcohol.

He wipes his mouth with his sleeve, a slow mocking and amused smirk coming over his face. Jin is amazed. He wonders when Kazuya stole those things—he hadn’t even seen his hands moving. The boy is a pirate all right.

Kazuya turns on his heel and continues up the gangway until he’s back on the ship. Koki and Jin, unable to follow, watch the small boy as he finishes that bottle by himself and chucks it overboard. It lands with a quiet splash in the water below. The boy waves them off and disappears into the ship again.

“That little fucking son of a…” Koki mutters angrily under his breath. “I’ll kill him!”

Jin is just amazed and quite impressed. For such a small thing, that boy was a force to be reckoned with and suddenly, being the king of a huge realm is not nearly as cool as being a pirate.

-

It’s not the last time Jin meets Kazuya. The Mercury Pirates—one of the most resourceful and ruthless pirate ships on the oceans—actually have a contract with Jin’s kingdom. Forged long before Jin was born to be the king.

“They supply us with a wealth of resources from the other realms,” his tutor tells him when he asks. “And in return, we offer them safe harbour and protection from the other kingdoms.”

No doubt, that would be the other kingdoms the Mercury Pirates steal from.

“So…” Jin starts slowly, his thoughts catching up with him as he speaks. “In a way...I’m a King of Pirates then?”

“You’re a king who cooperates with piracy, yes,” his tutor corrects him carefully. “When you come of age, you will have some say in whether or not those treaties continue.”

Jin can’t imagine why he’d want to stop the treaties. He thinks pirates are so cool and he gains a new level of respect for his faceless advisors when he finds out they’re the ones who authorised and approved of the treaties in the first place.

He sees Kazuya again, one month after their first meeting and the first thing the little pirate does is wince.

“You again?” he huffs.

“Kazuya.” His father places a firm hand on his head and forces him to bow. “Bow to the King.”

Jin hears Koki snorting behind him and smiles as he nods to Kazuya’s father. He finds it completely charming and amusing that Kazuya dares to treat Jin like anyone else—even when they’re all in the throne room and everyone, including Jin’s advisors, are watching. Maybe he’s insolent for doing so but Jin likes that Kazuya doesn’t treat him like the king he actually is.

“Forgive my son,” Kazuya’s father grins, he has a tooth missing and some shine a golden tinge. “He isn’t used to being around royalty.”

Jin lifts his hand and shakes his head. “It’s fine,” he tells him. “What have you brought for the kingdom?”

“A fine shipment of wine from Arashi Island,” Kazuya’s father explains, his hand finally releasing Kazuya’s bowed head. “And enough rice to last us through the winter.”

Jin’s already heard the custom from his advisors. When it comes to the Mercury Pirates, his role is just to accept the goods, offer them protection, and don’t ask whether or not the goods were legally obtained. Because odds are they weren’t.

He nods when he notices the advisors aren’t talking to him. It means they’re pleased.

“Very well. How long will you be staying with us?” he asks. “Your tavern and boarding, of course, is yours to stay in for however long you wish.”

“Just a week, My Lord,” Kazuya’s father beams. “We’ve got some business out in the Moon Islands soon.”

Jin’s heard of the Moon Islands. It’s one of the only islands where magic happens. When he read about it in his textbooks, of course, it all sounded like fairy tales and nonsense, but he’s always wanted to go there to see it for himself. The pictures are always so beautiful, an island and realm of perpetual night. He remembers images of forests cast in darkness, lit by the blue tint of the moon.

Kazuya’s father probably notices his face because he winks. “Perhaps we’ll pick you up something from there.”

From what Jin knows of boys around his age in the kingdom, they’re expected to do certain things and act in a certain way. Thirteen is a terribly awkward age, especially for Jin—whose list of responsibilities and rules is ten times that of a normal boy. But boys his age are generally expected to be boisterous, active little balls of testosterone who run around being stupid while they still can and haven’t even discovered girls yet.

Kazuya is unlike any boy he’s ever met.

Jin meets him again later, when he and Koki sneak into the Mercury Tavern and spot Kazuya seated at a big round table with at least twenty other pirates—all of them adults. Kazuya is the tiniest, youngest of them all and he drinks just as heavily as any of them.

“ _I walk in the bar and the fella's all cheer, they order me up a whiskey and beer. You ask me why I'm writing this poem, some call it a tavern but I call it home_ ,” the boy sings, just as slurred and rowdy as the rest of the adults. Some are already passed out under the table, they reek of whiskey and none of them can articulate their words anymore.

What surprises Jin, more than the sight of seeing a twelve year old drinking with adults, is the fact that Kazuya is actually able to hold a tune. Most of the other adults around him are flat, slurred, or just plain singing in gibberish.

“ _Fuck you, I’m drunk_ !” the boy sings cheerfully, his middle finger up with the rest of his crew. “ _Fuck you, I’m drunk, and I’m gonna be drunk ‘til the next time I’m drunk_!”

They cheer loudly, banging their empty glasses on the rickety wooden table. Jin watches some of them fall off their chairs and when Kazuya turns around and sees him, his face immediately changes.

“Ugh, you again,” he cringes.

“Your Highness!” Kazuya’s father swims into view from the bar and stops in front of Jin. “What a pleasant surprise! It’s not often we get a king in our midst.”

“Yeah, I…” Jin glances at Kazuya who has now gone back to drinking. Jin turns his eyes to Kazuya’s father instead. “I just wanted to see what it’s like in here.”

“Odd place for a king but we are happy to welcome you here!” The man laughs and pats Jin’s shoulder, he reaches around to grab Koki with his other hand and ushers them inside. “Barkeep! A bottle of your finest whiskey!”

He places Jin and Koki at the table with Kazuya and the other pirates. The enormous grin on his face is as ominous as it is promising when he looks at Jin. “We’re gonna have a good night.”

Jin isn’t allowed to drink in the castle. His advisors forbid it on the grounds that the law states he isn’t old enough and neither is Koki. But that doesn’t stop either of them from tasting the whiskey when it’s placed before them in a huge glass.

The taste is horrendous. It’s strong, invading all of Jin’s senses, and he nearly spits it out. Kazuya laughs at him. “The King can’t drink alcohol!” he teases.

Jin looks at Koki to see if he’s spat it out too, but to his surprise the joker is actually halfway through his glass already. He stares in disbelief and Koki shrugs. “Just scull it.”

“There’s a pirate in you, boy!” one of the other crewmates, an older man with barely any teeth and a missing eye, says as he throws his arm around Koki’s shoulders.

Jin glances at Kazuya beside him and takes note of the silent challenge in Kazuya’s eyes. He clenches his eyes and forces himself to drink the whiskey down. It burns his throat, singes his taste buds, and makes him shiver, but when he forces three large gulps of the drink down and slams his glass down on the table the rest of the tavern cheer in approval.

“We’ll make a pirate of you yet!” Kazuya’s father promises but Jin is distracted by Kazuya himself.

There’s a smile on his face, the first one he’s seen on him, and it changes his entire being from an angry, grumpy little pirate to something else. Something quite beautiful.

It makes Jin’s cheeks go red and thankfully nobody notices it as they pour him another glass and push it into his hands.

“Let’s drink the night away!” Kazuya’s father cheers. The others join him in rowdy and wild joy but Jin can’t see anything but Kazuya. He’s different when he’s happy and he obviously seems to be at ease with his crew. The smile changes everything about him and for a moment, Jin even forgets he has a drink to finish.

Koki nudges him and Jin snaps back to reality. He takes his whiskey and hides a reluctant wince before downing the poison whole. Later, he’ll blame the alcohol for the confusing buzz in his stomach and his reaction to Kazuya’s smile. It’s the strongest whiskey they had and to a boy like Jin—whose greatest alcoholic achievement was a glass of wine—it’s a hell of a place to start.

Jin ends up being carried by Koki out of the tavern in the earliest hours of the morning. However, because Koki’s kind of hammered as well they send Kazuya with them to make sure he gets home alright.

“ _Koookiiii,_ ” Jin slurs where he’s draped over Koki’s back. He’s too drunk to even hold onto him, his legs are in Koki’s sloppy hold and Koki has to bend over to make sure Jin doesn’t just fall off him.

Kazuya laughs at them both. “Nice to know the King can’t hold his piss.”

“Why the fuck are you so sober then?” Koki slurs, glaring at Kazuya as he stumbles with the King on his back. “You drank more than us.”

“That was weak whiskey,” Kazuya tells them. “I’ve had stronger shit on Kanjani.”

Jin buries his nose in the back of Koki’s neck and notes Koki’s scent isn’t nearly as pleasant as he wants it to be. Koki kind of smells like sweat and bread and it’s not at all what Jin wants to smell when he’s this drunk. He opens his eyes to look at Kazuya and wonders what he smells like. He tries to lean towards him—forgetting that Koki’s carrying him—and just when he reaches out his arm to grab him, the world kind of goes upside down as he falls off Koki’s back and lands with a hard thump on the ground.

“Bloody hell,” Koki stumbles and catches himself on the pole. “Jin, don’t move around so much!”

“You’re fucking hopeless,” Kazuya rolls his eyes. He doesn’t realise at all that he’s sort of fulfilling Jin’s plan as he leans down to pick the King up and drape him on his back instead.

“Come on,” he says to Koki. “Let's get the King in his bed before the advisors notice he’s gone.”

It’s six in the morning. They probably already know he’s gone but Jin doesn’t care. He sticks his nose in the back of Kazuya’s neck and breathes deep, relieved when he finds out that Kazuya smells of vanilla. He smells nice.

“Those advisors are creepy,” Kazuya says as he carries Jin and looks at Koki. “You can’t see their faces. They’re like black shadows that don’t move unless something goes wrong. They don’t even talk.”

“That’s what an advisor is,” Koki shrugs. “Shadows. They don’t talk and they don’t interfere unless Jin does something wrong. They’ve always been like that. Advisors only talk to the King.”

“They do?” Kazuya blinks. “I’ve never seen them.”

“They talk all the time apparently,” Koki explains. “But only the King can hear them. He’s...programmed to hear them.”

Kazuya stops and Jin mumbles into his neck. The younger boy squints a little. “...What do you mean programmed?”

Koki stops as well. He turns around and looks at Kazuya. “The King is half a robot,” he explains gently. “Didn’t you know that? That’s what makes him so special. He is programmed, engineered, and crafted to do exactly as the advisors tell him to do.”

Jin starts to slip a little and Kazuya hitches him up firmly on his back. “But…” the little pirate stammers. “He feels so human…”

“Well, the realm is hardly going to listen to silent advisors,” Koki laughs. “The King is the mouthpiece of the advisors. He does what they want him to do. In order to connect to his people, he has to be half-human too.”

Kazuya clearly had not seen this coming. He hitches Jin again on his back and walks ahead of Koki, his mind thinking through this new information. “Is this common? Is this something other kings are?”

“From what I know, yes,” Koki shrugs. “The other realms have robot kings too. All of them controlled by advisors. It’s the way of the world.”

“Do they have names? Any personality of their own?” Kazuya shivers. “It’s creepy the way they just stand there and stare at you.”

“Advisors don’t have names,” Koki explains, somehow coherent as he stumbles after Kazuya. “They don’t have faces. They don’t have personalities. They exist solely to ensure the kingdom runs smoothly and that Jin does his job.”

Jin is slowly passing out on Kazuya’s back. The other is so firm, so securely holding Jin up that the King doesn’t even fear that he’ll drop him. He knows Kazuya won’t. He’s just barely listening as he closes his eyes and buries his nose in the nape of Kazuya’s neck. Each breath makes the younger shiver a little but he doesn’t drop Jin.

“Doesn’t Jin have a father?” Kazuya asks in a small voice. “Someone who did this job before him?”

“That’s not how the line of succession works,” Koki explains. “The king before Jin wasn’t related to him at all. When he died, Jin was just...created. The advisors created him. That’s how a king works. Jin will be king until the day he dies, then someone else will be created after him.”

“What if Jin has kids?” Kazuya asks. “Will they be chosen?”

“Kings don’t marry,” Koki says. “Kings aren’t allowed to father offspring.”

If Jin were more sober, he might have had an opinion on that but it’s nothing new to him. He’s been told the rules ever since he was little. He knows he’s not allowed to marry. He’ll never have a wife, never father children—never love another more than he loves his kingdom. That’s the rule.

“What if he falls in love with someone?” Kazuya asks, his voice laced with a little concern and it might have touched Jin if he weren’t so drunk.

“Kings don’t love,” Koki says, though this time his tone is hard to read. Whether Koki agrees with this rule or not, it’s not his place to have an opinion on it. “Kings don’t love anything or anyone more than their own kingdom. That is why kings do not marry, the kingdom is their one and only priority. That and...” he pauses. “...I’m not sure Jin, as a robot, is actually capable of falling in love anyway. I think that was something the advisors would have worked to get out of his human system.”

Kazuya’s hands are strong under Jin’s legs, hitching him up securely on his back as they finally reach the castle entrance. Koki leads Kazuya to the King’s quarters, the both of them bowing apologetically to the advisor stationed at Jin’s door as they enter.

Jin has no control over his limbs, flopping down onto his bed as Kazuya gently sets him down. Koki sighs in relief. “I’ll go to bed, if you don’t mind,” he tells Kazuya as he stumbles towards the door to go to his own bed. “I’m surprised I’m still walking.”

Kazuya nods and Jin whines sleepily as Kazuya takes his shoes off and tucks him haphazardly underneath the blankets. He draws them over Jin’s chest and places a wastebasket next to the bed along with a tall glass of water for when Jin wakes up. Jin’s eyes flutter a little and Kazuya shakes his head.

“Hopeless,” he says but his tone is a little gentler than it would have been before.

Jin reaches his hand out blindly and grasps Kazuya’s. He can barely see him, everything is blurry but he’s not unconscious yet. His long, elegant fingers close over Kazuya’s and he blinks at him.

“Stay?” he asks and he doesn’t even know why he’s asking. Just that he wants Kazuya to stay with him tonight. He doesn’t want to fall asleep alone in his huge bed with his cold, unfeeling advisor just outside his door.

Maybe it’s because Kazuya has some sympathy, or maybe it’s because he’s too drunk to journey back to the tavern again, but he sighs and starts taking his swords and knives out from where they’re sheathed all over his clothes. Jin watches in partial amusement as Kazuya removes three swords, five daggers, one gun, three shuriken stars, and one set of nunchucks before finally taking his vest, shoes, and pants off. He gestures silently for Jin to scoot over and slips into Jin’s bed beside him.

Jin beams and resists the urge to snuggle into the warm boy beside him. “Thanks.”

“I did it for the bed,” Kazuya grunts. “Never slept in a king’s bed before.”

Whatever his reasoning, Jin is glad to have him there. He falls asleep almost instantly and he’s not even surprised when he wakes up in the late afternoon to find Kazuya gone. The little pirate leaves a dent in Jin’s bed where he’d slept and a small note with messy handwriting that reads, ‘thanks.’

Jin keeps seeing Kazuya after that. He drags Koki out of the castle whenever he has free time and makes his way to the village where the pirates are stationed for the week. Turns out, that as much as the twelve year old pirate can drink he actually doesn’t do it that often and when his crew are in the tavern getting smashed, Kazuya is usually doing something else.

The pirates aren’t allowed to steal anything on Jin’s lands. That’s part of the agreement and it keeps the villagers at ease knowing the pirates won’t do anything to them.

Jin quickly finds out that Kazuya’s hobbies, other than getting shitfaced with his crew, include swordfighting, running around, and being a general nuisance without actually breaking the terms of the treaty.  He seems to like baseball too and makes himself known to the baseball teams nearest the tavern.

“Come on,” Kazuya shouts at the poor pitcher who is terrified of playing with a pirate. “Throw the fucking ball!”

Jin glances at the poor boy. The only baseball team that will let Kazuya play with them is entirely populated with boys around their age, from twelve to fifteen. Even so, none of them are entirely happy to play with Kazuya as he hits hard, plays hard, and has a very colourful vocabulary they’re not used to.

The boy throws the ball and Kazuya whacks it out of the field. He drops the bat and runs across the bases. The boys stationed at each base hastily jump out of his way as he charges past them. The people watching the game cheer, Kazuya’s own team cheer, and Jin joins in with Koki. For such a small boy, Kazuya seems to have a lot of pent up rage.

Kazuya makes it back to the homebase just in time. He practically tackles the boy in his way, slamming his head down into the ground as he touches the home plate and is declared safe. He doesn’t even notice that he probably broke that boy’s nose as he gets up and is cheered home by his own team. Jin watches the boy being carried away on a stretcher and can’t help but look at Kazuya in amazement.

“He’s sort of a demon,” Koki mutters to him but his tone is warm. Accepting, even respectful. It’s the first time Jin’s seen Koki approve of anyone his age since Jin himself.

One colourful night finds Jin back in the tavern with Kazuya and Koki. They get a table by themselves and Kazuya pours them a drink that glows. It’s red, then changes colour to orange, yellow, green, blue, and finally purple.

“The trick is to drink it when it turns the colour you want,” Kazuya explains as both Jin and Koki peer in fascination at the small rainbow shot glass.

“What is it?” Koki asks.

“It’s a drink from the Venus Islands,” Kazuya explains. “They call it a mood shot. Each colour will change your mood. When the colour turns to the one you want, you have to throw the liquid down your throat like the shot it is.”

“What emotions are the colours?” Jin asks. He’s a little wary of drinking this thing and bursting out in tears when his emotions turn sad. That would be so uncool in a room full of pirates.

The grin on Kazuya’s face is wicked and his eyes are worse as he pushes the shot to Jin. “Why don’t you find out, Your Highness?”

He pushes another to Koki and Koki looks just as reluctant—probably for the same reasons. Jin ultimately decides he’s going to choose red. It’s his namesake after all. He watches the colours change and waits for purple before bringing the shot to his lips. When it turns red, he sculls it down and swallows it as fast as he can. He then slams the glass down and winces at the taste. It’s unexpectedly sweet, a little too sweet.

“How long until the effects take place?” he asks, carefully opening his eyes and looking at Kazuya. The boy looks amused and Koki looks a little worried.

“Not long,” Kazuya purrs, his chin resting gently on his hand.

Jin doesn’t notice it at first, thinking it’s simple irritation because Kazuya is being all secretive about what the shot is going to do to him, but then it gets worse. Rage bubbles in Jin’s mind, clenching his hands, his jaw, and hardening his eyes as mild irritation gives way to full blown anger. He slams his fist on the table, startling Koki and amusing Kazuya as he gets up and rounds on the little pirate.

“I’M YOUR FUCKING KING! WHAT IF THAT WAS POISON, YOU ASSHOLE!?”

The rest of the tavern cheers, most of them well aware why Jin is so angry and the other half just happy for the noise and disruption that they seem to thrive off.  Kazuya laughs and Jin wants nothing more than to pound his pretty little face in. He jumps across the table and tackles Kazuya to the ground with an enraged roar. They crash onto the ground, Jin pinning Kazuya down, and he’s not even aware Kazuya’s still laughing at him even as he tries to strangle him.

“Jin!” Koki screeches and tries to pry the King off the insane little pirate.

Nobody else is helping. They either think that Jin won’t be able to hurt Kazuya or that Jin isn’t going to, but when Koki finally manages to grab Jin’s arms and pry him off, Kazuya laughs and coughs where he lies on the floor. He looks at Jin and sits up, a smirk on his face. “You fight like my grandma.”

Jin wants to hit him again, wants to take all the rage he didn’t even know he had out on the little shit but Koki stuffs another shot down his throat and forces him to swallow as it turns blue.

It takes a couple of seconds to take effect. Jin’s efforts in Koki’s arms get weaker and weaker until finally he’s struck with this horrible, terrible guilt. How could he have blamed Kazuya for being who he was? Kazuya was only trying to help them have fun and Jin nearly strangled him for it. The guilt that climbs up over him, clawing into his mind is almost more than he can bear and he bursts into tears. He grabs Kazuya next and buries his face in Kazuya’s shoulder, his arms tight around the other, clinging and digging his hands into his shoulders.

“I’m so sorry!!!” he cries openly.

The pirates cheer like they did before and Jin doesn’t notice much except Kazuya’s half-hearted pats on his back, as though the pirate preferred it when Jin was angry rather than sad.

“I’m not drinking that,” Koki declares. “How do we get him back to normal?”

“He’ll come right in a bit,” Kazuya promises.

‘A bit’ turns out to be one hour of crying and clinging to Kazuya. Jin doesn’t know why he clings to that boy in particular when he could just as easily cry and apologize to Koki for dragging him into all these messes, but Kazuya’s vanilla scent is soothing. When Jin finally calms down, he hands him whisky instead and Jin’s never been so happy to have a ‘normal’ drink before.

“At least this won’t make me cry,” Jin says, wiping residue tears from his cheek as he sculls the whiskey down gratefully. It burns and he’s kind of starting to like it now.

He taps the table and looks at Koki. “Oi,” he says. “At least take one mood shot. I took two.”

“No fucking way,” Koki snorts.

“You chicken?” Kazuya asks, the same challenge in his eyes.

Koki takes it, hook, line and sinker. He takes the last mood shot and he doesn’t even pick a colour. He just sculls it down and it happens to be green when he swallows.

He then spends the next hour going from violently ill to insanely jealous of everyone. He’s jealous of how Jin clings to Kazuya and of how Jin is the King. Of how Kazuya is so fucking cool as a twelve year old pirate when all Koki has to do is make the King laugh and that’s his job.

“The green monster,” Kazuya explains with a laugh. “That’s what the green does.”

Kazuya doesn’t comment on how Jin is still sitting really close to him, or how Jin’s hand is sort of holding onto the hem of Kazuya’s shirt. He’d been clinging when he was crying and he just sort of didn’t let go even as he came back to his senses. On a certain level, Jin himself doesn’t even know why he likes being near Kazuya. He just knows he likes it and he doesn’t want to have to figure out why.

All three of them end up so plastered that they have no hope of going back to the castle in one piece. Kazuya shares his room with them instead and it goes without saying that Jin gets the bed. Koki passes out on the futon on the floor and Kazuya curls up at the end of the bed.

Jin snuggles into the sheets. They smell like Kazuya and they’re really warm. He sighs in content. “I wanna be a pirate.”

Kazuya just looks at him with amusement and falls asleep at his feet.

The pirates set sail the very next day and Jin doesn’t see him again for six months.

-

When Jin turns fourteen the advisors decide it’s the right time for him to learn about how his kingdom deals with prisoners.

Jin doesn’t actually want to learn. Not that. He already knows from his textbooks that his kingdom is one of the worst when it comes to torture. Since the previous king had abolished the death penalty, the advisors had brought in some of the cruelest torture methods known to the world. Cruel in the fact that what they lacked in physical torture, they made up for in psychological. Criminals, some of the worst, who were imprisoned on Jin’s lands actually begged to be put to death rather than lose their minds at the hands of the torture inflicted by the advisors and the invisible guards.

Jin is taken down to the dungeons at about seven in the morning. He’s sleepy and he kind of wishes he could have brought Koki with him so he wouldn’t have to see this alone.

“No,” the advisor had told him. “The torture realm is a place only the King and his advisors may enter.”

Jin looks around. The dungeons, to start with, are the lightest form of punishment available. Lying just underground, the dungeons provide a last glimpse of freedom for incoming prisoners. A long hallway stretches as far as Jin’s eye can see, lighted by sunlight that falls through the glass ceiling. Damp, dirty cells line the walls, each vulnerable to the elements by a grate above them. If it snowed, rained, or hailed, the prisoners would have nowhere to go.

He’s taken down even further. To a long, beautiful marble hallway. Jin stays close to his faceless advisor and watches the shadows of the guards around him.

Vampires.

That’s what people call them. However, nobody can actually see vampires unless they’ve been bitten by one themselves, and that ends in either dying or turning into one. From what Jin knows from his textbooks, vampires are terrifying beings that once were humans. Bloodthirst takes over them, morphs their body into something truly hideous. His textbook actually only contains drawings, artist renditions of what they think vampires look like: Sharp fangs, blood dripping everywhere, three eyes, and slender bodies.

Their shadows are terrifying enough, but the cold. The cold they emit sends shivers down Jin’s spine as he counts five silent vampires surrounding him. Protecting him.

The advisor seems completely unaffected and walks on, leading the way to the middle of the hallway where he turns left and just disappears. Jin blinks and follows. His body is pulled into an invisible rip in the air where he finds himself in a dark room, lit only by the long, thin strands of light that come from the ceiling.

This is where they take tier two criminals, the ones who are worse than common thieves but still better than traitors and murderers. Jin peers through the slits of light and realises, with a start, that each beam of light leads to different kinds of rooms. Each of them bizarre and unexplainable. He sees a desert in one and an empty table in another. He sees a room that emits sounds like white noise, designed to drive the prisoner insane with the constant buzzing in their heads.

He shivers. This is where the prisoners lose their minds. Turn into hollow shells that do nothing but shriek or sing. Jin spots one. He has a gas mask firmly plastered over his mouth and black ropes tied all around his body, binding him to his captor overhead who moves him like a puppet. Jin blinks, shuddering as the man moves, bends in awkward angles and shifts to her will. The prisoner even breaths as she wills him to.

“Jin,” the advisor says, monotone and lifeless as usual.

Jin follows him to the last stop on the ghastly tour, the third tier. The Black Beyond as it's known in legends. The worst form of torture the advisors have thought of yet. He follows the advisor down a flight of stairs to one large room. In the centre of the room, a large, thick wall of glass separates him from the Black Beyond.

It is as its name suggests: Black nothingness. Just darkness that seems to stretch on forever. But Jin spots one man. One lone man curled up in a fetal position, floating in nothing and hiding his face in his knees. Jin doesn’t know if he’s dead or sleeping or just hiding, but he doesn’t move. He doesn’t shriek. He doesn’t utter a single sound.

“Total silence,” the advisor explains to Jin. “That’s the worst form of punishment there is. If it’s not enough, he’s also connected to the prisoners on tier two. He can feel their pain to add to his own.”

“How long has be been in there?” Jin asks and he feels truly sorry for the man. Whatever he’d done, he doesn’t deserve to be floating around in this for the rest of his life. Death would be kinder.

“Three years,” the advisor tells him and Jin’s eyes widen.

“That’s the punishment for traitors,” the advisor continues and Jin looks up. The man doesn’t have a face. He doesn’t have eyes but Jin can feel them on him. He feels the weight of the words as though they were aimed at him. A threat.

“How do you feed him?” Jin can’t help but ask. “How does he function?”

“He doesn’t,” the advisor says. “The Black Beyond ensures that all they need do is breathe.”

“Can he feel anything? Can he think?” Jin frowns. If one were sleeping, comatose for that long, then it might not be so bad because you wouldn’t know anything.

“He feels, he thinks, and he breathes. He is completely aware of where he is, but he cannot move. Cannot talk. Cannot escape,” the advisor tells him, tone cold and lifeless as ever.

Jin stares in disbelief. That they have something this cruel in his own kingdom, it’s unimaginable.

“Our crime rates are the lowest in the world,” the advisor explains to him when they finally leave the room. They hadn’t been in there that long, but to Jin even ten seconds is far too long. The shivers rushing down his spine lessen a little as he leaves the room.

Of course their crime rates are the lowest in the world. Nobody would dare break the law in the land of the worst punishments known to man.

They let him go after that. When Jin finds Koki and tells him about the Black Beyond, Koki doesn’t even believe him at first.

“How...how could there even be such a place?” Koki asks. “A big black...vacuum? I thought those rumours were exaggerated.”

“They’re not,” Jin stresses. “They’re really not. They’re…” he struggles to describe it. It’s one thing telling someone else about the horrors he’d seen but it’s something he doesn’t think Koki will grasp unless he’d seen it himself.

What’s amazing to him is that it’s not even physical torture. There are no whips, no beatings, no iron maidens, or knives. It’s all about the mind and prisoners who go in never come out the same. In the rare cases that they even come out, they’ve long since lost their minds. Their lives are forever ruined and they never regain that sanity again.

Death is so much kinder.

-

Jin meets Ueda Tatsuya when the Mercury Pirates finally return from the Moon Islands. He’s this tiny little thing, awkward looking face with dirty brown hair that flops like silk over the pillows he rests on. He would be pretty if he wasn’t so battered and beaten.  Jin first sees him when Kazuya takes him and Koki down to the lower decks and shows them the ‘rabbit’ he’d found.

“He was in bad shape,” Kazuya explains as the three of them look over the unconscious boy curled up in Kazuya’s hammock.

The boy has cuts and bruises all over his skin, dried blood near his temple, and both his hands have scars and marks.

Koki frowns. “You said you found a rabbit.”

“He is a rabbit,” Kazuya says. “When I found him he was stuck in a rabbit trap. He’d been there for two days after being chased by wolves.”

Jin and Koki still look skeptical and Kazuya sighs. “It’s the Moon Islands. Have you never heard of the rabbits that live there?”

“No,” both of them answer.

“They have human forms. Magic is a thing on the Moon Islands,” Kazuya says as if both of them should know. Jin should know and he has heard about magic in his textbooks but he’d never expected he’d meet a ‘rabbit’ in the form of a boy.

“So…” Koki sighs and nods to the sleeping boy. “Does he talk?”

“Not much,” Kazuya shrugs. “We’re still trying to get through to him.  He’s pretty traumatised but we felt it was best to get him off the island and take him with us.”

Jin doesn’t really know what Kazuya means until Tatsuya wakes up later and finds them in the tavern. They’re catching up at the table when one of the crew brings the beaten boy into the tavern. The second Tatsuya spots Kazuya he zips quickly to his side.

“Ah, you’re awake.” Kazuya pulls up a chair and ushers Tatsuya into it. Tatsuya has alarmingly blue eyes and he looks different when he’s conscious. Still beaten to high hell, but maybe underneath all of that he’d actually be quite pretty.

“This is Jin and Koki,” Kazuya introduces them. “Jin is the king and Koki is the…”

“Joker,” Koki finishes for him.

Tatsuya looks at both of them and lowers his eyes. He manages a small bow of acknowledgement and Jin wonders if Tatsuya actually eats and drinks like a human or if he has more rabbit tendencies.

“Do you want something to drink?” Kazuya asks and there’s a gentleness in his voice and gestures that Jin hasn’t actually seen before. It sort of makes him jealous.

Tatsuya blinks in confusion and Koki frowns. “Can he actually talk?”

“He can, he’s just not used to it.” Kazuya pats Tatsuya’s back and passes him his half-full glass of vodka. “Here, try this one.”

Tatsuya looks down at the glass and gently picks it up. He sniffs the drink first and twitches a few times before drinking it down whole. When he puts the glass down his entire face scrunches up in a wince.

“Bit strong?” Kazuya giggles.

Tatsuya glares at him and Kazuya orders him a glass of milk instead. They must have told the barkeep about him because he comes with a carrot too that Tatsuya is more than happy to eat.

Jin doesn’t really realise what the feeling is but he’s envious of Tatsuya. He doesn’t envy those bruises and scars but he wonders what it must be like. To be able to travel with the Mercury Pirates. Travel with Kazuya. Be out at sea with him for months at a time and see the world that few ever get to see.

On some level he knows it’s petty, even stupid to be jealous of a beaten rabbit, but Jin can’t help it. He sees the gentle way Kazuya handles Tatsuya and wishes he’d stop.

The Mercury Pirates are stationed for one month. Jin suspects it would have been shorter had they not had Tatsuya. Over the next few weeks, the one thing Jin learns is that Tatsuya’s behaviour is extremely erratic and because he only seems to trust Kazuya—as he’d been the one who saved him—he takes up a lot of Kazuya’s time.

He keeps running away when he gets nightmares. Sprinting with a mad speed off the boat and out of the docks. Kazuya usually finds him hiding in the bushes. He doesn’t say anything to Jin or Koki and he only seems to talk to Kazuya. Even when he does talk in front of Jin and Koki he whispers in Kazuya’s ear. Kazuya swears up and down that Tatsuya actually is a rabbit but neither Jin or Koki see any proof to help them believe him.

It’s not until four weeks later that Jin finally sees it.

He escapes the castle after four days of being stuck inside with endless lessons and tutors telling him how a king ought to act (and apparently spending most of his time with pirates is not ‘kingly behaviour’).

Jin rushes out onto the docks and runs onto the Mercury ship. He drops down to the decks and, excited, goes to find Kazuya in his bunk. What he finds is Kazuya on the brink of tears, worried out of his mind and yelling at the cook for not watching Tatsuya.

“I told you he shouldn’t be left alone! Ever! What the fuck were you doing?!” he screeches at the poor cook.

“I just had to pee—”

Kazuya growls and turns. When he sees Jin, his face lights in pure relief as he rushes to him. “Jin, have you seen him? Have you seen Tatsuya?”

Jin blinks. He hasn’t seen Kazuya this panicked and it’s so unlike him that he freezes a moment too long. Kazuya grabs his shoulders and shakes him a little. “Jin!”

“I…” Jin blinks and looks around. Kazuya’s hammock is empty and so is Tatsuya’s. He looks at the boy. “Ueda ran away?”

Kazuya is so stressed, so scared, that it takes Jin by surprise. He didn’t know the rabbit was so important to the little pirate. “Please Jin,” he pleads. “Find him.”

Some small, childish part of Jin doesn’t want to. He doesn’t like how the rabbit has been taking up Kazuya’s time and Jin doesn’t get to see him enough as it is. When Kazuya’s gone, he’s gone for months and Jin doesn’t even hear from him; and when he’s on the docks, Jin still has kingly duties that stop him from spending as much time with the pirate as he wants to. Then Tatsuya comes along and takes up what little time he gets. It’s not fair.

This isn’t even the first time Tatsuya’s run away.

“Isn’t he in the bush?” he asks stupidly and Kazuya shakes his head.

“He had a nightmare last night,” he tells Jin. “A really bad one. He has trouble remembering where he is sometimes.”

Jin wonders if Kazuya actually downplayed how bad Tatsuya’s trauma is.

“Please, Jin,” Kazuya pleads, his eyes wide and it makes Jin’s heart pound painfully. “Help me find him.”

Jin knows he has to. He may not think much of the rabbit and, yeah, maybe he holds some unfair grudges over the guy for taking up all of Kazuya’s time, but he knows how important he seems to be to Kazuya. For him, he has to.

He heads out of the ship with Kazuya and points down the docks. “I’ll take the marketplace, you take the northern village,” he says to the boy and they sprint in their opposite directions.

Jin keeps his eyes peeled. Tatsuya can’t be that hard to find. Yes, he’s a tiny little fifteen year old but he also kind of sticks out like a sore thumb in the sea of dark haired villagers. Tatsuya, with his dirty, light brown hair and twitchy tendencies can’t be that hard to find.

It takes Jin about twenty minutes of running around, rushing in and out of shops, even checking the trash bins before he sees something flit out of the corner of his eye. Something white and fast. Jin turns around and watches as the villagers in the market part to let a white rabbit, tiny and jumpy, sprint past them all. Jin stares in amazement.

Rabbits are not common on his lands. Especially not in the marketplace.

There’s a commotion as three large dogs, the butchers dogs, chase after the rabbit. They crash into stalls and shops on their way with a single minded intent to kill the white rabbit. Jin stares after it and shakes his head.

That can’t be…

He sprints after the dogs and starts pushing through villagers. Nobody stops the dogs. The butchers dogs are these enormous, ferocious rottweilers. They’re kind of infamous in the village because the butcher—Jin suspects—mistreats them quite often and thus they’re actually pretty dangerous, vicious creatures. Nobody would dare go near them for fear of losing an arm.

Jin runs after them and follows them out of the marketplace and out into the residentials. Children scream and run back inside when they see the dogs, mothers cover their babies, and men jump out of the way as the rabbit sprints past first, followed closely by the dogs and finally by Jin.

The rabbit skits into an alleyway and Jin sees the dogs go after it. He rounds the corner and stops when he sees the rabbit crawling and hiding in a box. It curls into a small ball, twitching as the dogs surround it and try to tear at the box. They’ll succeed if Jin doesn’t do something soon.

Jin does the first thing he can think of. He grabs a stick nearby and starts swinging it at the first dog. It hits successfully but the other dogs round on him. Jin pants and holds his ground, kicking and swinging the stick at them.

But, of course, Jin and one stick is no match for three massive rottweilers and it’s only a matter of time before one of them actually bites him. He feels, rather than sees, a set of sharp teeth digging into his left calf muscle and cries out in pain as the other dog starts attacking his side. Jin swings his stick at it, hitting it in the head, but he falls to his knees. Another dog bites his side and this is the one that gets him. His breath leaves in a pained gasp and he can’t think about anything other than the fact that he can’t move from the pain. He wriggles the dog off and scrambles towards the box where the rabbit hides.

The pain is unbearable. It’s blinding. The blood is pouring down his leg and side as Jin sits in front of the box, gasping and panting, and holds his stick out in front of him.

He’s going to die. The dogs are going to maul him. Jin sees one of the dogs running towards him and closes his eyes.

But the bite never comes.

Instead what happens is something solid and hard jumps out of the box behind him. He hears a dog whimper and a hard thud on the wall.

Jin opens his eyes to see Tatsuya, stark naked and breathing hard like a madman. The boy grabs Jin’s stick and yanks it off him, smacking the dog to his left with so much force that the stick actually snaps in half. The third dog rushes for him and Tatsuya rounds on it viciously. He leaps at the dog and manages to actually pin it down, pressing its head down into the ground as it scrambles and whimpers for mercy.

Jin stares in disbelief. There’s a madness, a murderous anger in Tatsuya’s eyes that totally offsets the meek, slightly traumatised boy he’s known for four weeks. Tatsuya lets the dog go and the three dogs rush off, whimpering and limping out of the alley.

Tatsuya is panting. His chest heaving with the anger that had been unleashed. He looks at Jin and turns his pretty blue eyes down to Jin’s leg, then to his side.

“You’re bleeding,” he says quietly. It’s the first time Jin’s ever heard him talk.

The pain is still shooting up Jin’s leg in spasms. His blood is draining fast and he doesn’t think he can stand up. Still, even with all that, he’s looking at Tatsuya and wondering why the boy is naked and if he really is the rabbit that was just hiding in the box behind him.

They both look up when they see Kazuya’s form coming in from the street. He sees Tatsuya then looks at Jin and the terror, the concern that flashes in his eyes is enough to erase all of Jin’s previous jealousy over Tatsuya.

“JIN!” Kazuya screams and rushes up to his side. He looks over his wounds and winces. “Can you walk?”

Jin doesn’t even think he can stay conscious much longer. He doesn’t know jack shit about blood loss and things like that. All he knows is that it hurts and his blood is everywhere.

“Jin,” Kazuya calls and his voice is starting to sound a little warbled, like Jin is underwater.

The boy leans in closer and Jin can feel his hand on his face. “Jin, stay with me. Come on, stay with me.”

Jin doesn’t. He closes his eyes and the last thing he hears before the black takes over him is the sound of Kazuya calling his name.

When he wakes up, some hours later, it’s in the tavern and Jin feels like shit. The pain shoots through him and when he looks down he sees haphazard stitching on his side and another one on his calf. His head is pounding, everything hurts, and the only thing that takes Jin’s mind off it is the sight of Kazuya sitting right beside him.

“Hey,” Kazuya smiles in relief when he sees Jin’s eyes are open. He sits closer and looks over him. “Are you alright? I didn’t know what to do so I just kind of took you back here. Cookie stitched up your wounds.”

Cookie is the guy who serves the meals in the tavern. His medical prowess consists of burning wounds closed, sewing them shut really badly, and taking the wrong medication. He’s a pirate, not a doctor.

Jin winces and suddenly remembers the rabbit he’d gotten himself mauled for. “Where’s…”

“Oh.” Kazuya grins and nods to the small white rabbit perched at the bottom of the bed.

Jin sits up and looks at the rabbit. It’s tiny, white, and fluffy. Its blue eyes remind him of Tatsuya and he tilts his head curiously. The rabbit twitches for a second before hopping gently up the bed. He springs along Jin’s uninjured leg and carefully hops onto his stomach.

Jin peers at it and Kazuya reaches out to stroke the rabbit’s head.

“He’s feeling a little guilty for putting you in that mess,” Kazuya explains. “But he knows you saved his life back there.”

“He saved mine,” Jin corrects him. “I could have been mauled to death by those dogs had it not been for him.”

Kazuya smiles and Jin pets the rabbit.  It hops off the bed, disappearing on the floor for a moment before emerging a fully naked and human Tatsuya. Kazuya watches silently as Tatsuya nears the bed—not at all minding his own nakedness—and bows to Jin.

“Thank you,” he breathes.

Jin shakes his head but he can’t help a smile.

Needless to say, from that moment on Jin doesn’t mind Tatsuya nearly as much.

-

Jin meets Taguchi Junnosuke when he’s fifteen years old and Kazuya is fourteen. In actuality, Taguchi Junnosuke is already well known on the oceans as the Prince of Thieves. The infamous prince, renowned for his flawless ability to steal from practically anyone.

With his company of homeless thieves, Taguchi has often been described as something like a ghost that slips in the dead of night and robs his victim of every valuable they ever possessed.

However,  when Jin hears about a company of mercenaries who successfully take out and exterminate most of Taguchi’s thieves, he’s not entirely surprised when he meets the prince himself on his shores.

He sits at his throne, his advisors buzzing quietly in his mind, when the Prince of Thieves himself is taken in for judgement. Koki raises his eyebrows from where he sits on the steps as the tall fourteen year old is brought in, his hands bound in chains behind him.

Taguchi Junnosuke fits the title of prince. He looks like one with his pretty face, long legs, messy jet black locks, and an almost smug grin on his face despite the chains. His clothes remind Jin of Kazuya and it sort of makes sense. In a way, Taguchi is kind of a pirate too.

He is brought before Jin and forced down onto his knees. They make him bow his head and Jin looks at the chains binding him tight.

He frowns. “Is that really necessary?”

“We couldn’t take any chances, my lord,” one of the dock guards tells him. “We ‘eard ‘e’s a slippery fellow.”

Jin listens to his advisors whispering in his ear. They stand completely motionless behind him as if they were nothing more than lifeless statues, not even their mouths twitch, but Jin can hear them just fine.

He sighs. “Tell me, why do you have him?”

“After Koyama’s forces took out most of his thieves, he fled,” the other guard explains. “We found him trying to steal a ship on the docks.”

“Some Prince of Thieves if you caught him stealing a ship,” Jin mutters under his breath. He’s a little disappointed that the famous Prince of Thieves was caught by his dock guards. Those guys are idiots.

Jin gets up from his throne and comes down the steps. He stops before Taguchi and wordlessly gestures that the men lift him up onto his feet again. When they do so, Jin is only a little alarmed to find that Taguchi is actually taller than him.

The boy smiles down at him and Jin clears his throat. “So, Prince of Thieves. I’m willing to bet you did not earn that nickname on superstition alone which suggests you are as good as the legends say you are. Which means you didn’t just get caught by my guards, you let yourself get caught.”

Taguchi raises his eyebrow but he smiles. “The King has a brain.”

“The King happens to know that a common thief can get past my dock guards,” Jin corrects him with a dry tone. “Which means you can with your eyes closed. You getting caught means you want something.”

“Correct.” Taguchi winces against the chains. “One request. Can you get these chains off?”

Jin nods. He doesn’t think they’re necessary. What is the prince going to do anyway? Run out of the courtroom? The guards would get him in two seconds flat.

“Release him,” he tells the dock guards.

Both look confused. “But, My Lord—”

“Release him,” Jin says, a little firmer. He glares at the guards. “It’s not like he can get away.”

The guards reluctantly pull Taguchi free of his restraints. The chains fall with a loud clatter on the marble floor as Taguchi gratefully rubs his arms and stretches them out.

“Thank you,” he sighs in relief.

Jin folds his arms. “So,” he says. “What do you want?”

“I want protection,” Taguchi tells him bluntly.

It makes Jin laugh. It makes the people watching laugh as well. Taguchi stands still and serene as Jin shakes his head. “Why would I protect the Prince of Thieves?”

“Because I’ve never stolen from you,” Taguchi replies calmly. “Because I could be a powerful ally on your side. Nothing is out of my grasp. I am the most useful thief in the world. Protect me and I’ll be your thief.”

Jin giggles. “You realise I also have a treaty with the Mercury Pirates for that exact same deal, right?”

“Yes, that’s why I chose to run to you and not to Arashi Island,” Taguchi nods. He’s still mysteriously calm. “Besides, I doubt King Ohno would be so kind.”

“If I’m regarded the kindest of the kings you could have chosen, I’m seriously disappointed,” Jin pats his chest in faux-hurt and hums. The offer is intriguing, he’ll give him that.

He listens to the whispers of the advisors in his ears and looks Taguchi over curiously. The advisors don’t hate the idea. Having the Prince of Thieves on their side is a smart choice and would benefit them greatly. But Taguchi Junnosuke —whilst he may have never robbed from Jin—has robbed from other kingdoms. Kingdoms Jin has friendships with and they don’t want to jeopardise that by taking in someone like Taguchi.

“I’ll tell you what,” Jin says when the advisors finally finish. “I can’t take you in. You know I can’t. I happen to have an alliance with most of the other kingdoms you’ve pissed off and openly accepting you as my ally would piss them all off too.”

Taguchi sighs and Jin continues. “But, if the Mercury Pirates take you as one of their own, then you’ll find safe haven on my lands by default.”

Taguchi’s face turns from serene and calm to quizzical. “You want me to join the pirates?”

“I have a contract with the Mercury Pirates. They are under my protection,” Jin explains. “I do not control them and I do not rule them. I simply offer them safe harbour in exchange for their goods. If you can convince them to accept you as one of theirs, you will be protected by them instead.”

Taguchi looks uneasy and Jin knows why. There is no honour amongst thieves but the Mercury Pirates have rules that Taguchi has already broken a thousand times simply by being who he is.

“Is there...no other way?” Taguchi asks.

“My hands are tied,” Jin tells him simply. “I’ll give you three days to either secure negotiations with the Mercury Pirates or get off my land. If you manage neither, I’ll be forced to arrest you to save face with my allies.”

Taguchi bows. He’s about to leave when Jin speaks up again. “One more thing.”

Taguchi pauses and Jin smiles. “If I hear of thievery on my lands, you’re my first suspect. So keep your hands to yourself.”

-

Taguchi is not popular with the Mercury Pirates. In fact, Kazuya’s father literally throws him off the ship the second he finds out who he is.

“We don’t negotiate with the Prince of Thieves,” he tells the boy as he splutters in the water below.

One would normally expect that the blatant rejection is a sign to pack his things and find someone else to ask for safety, but Taguchi doesn’t leave. By the second day, he’s already trying again. This time he brings gifts, valuable items he’d stolen from other islands including a very famous pair of glasses that once belonged to Nishikido Ryo.

While this is going on, Jin hangs out with Kazuya, Tatsuya, and Koki at the tavern. From the building they can see the docks and watch through the window as Taguchi is thrown continuously overboard.

“He’s determined, I’ll give him that,” Kazuya notes.

Jin is already distracted. Kazuya came back with the Mercenary Pirates about a week ago from a long stint out on the Kinki regions and he’s come back so much taller. His face is a little less awkward now and he’s starting to actually grow into it.

He’s quite attractive and whenever he looks at Jin, Jin can’t help the small flutter of nervousness that takes over him.

Tatsuya has gotten used to the Mercury Pirates as well. Since Kazuya found him, he’s sort of been adopted and integrated into them; and after the incident with the dogs, he’s much warmer towards Jin too—and Koki by default. He turned sixteen last week and apparently the pirates made a huge deal out of it by sinking a rival ship and robbing them for all they’re worth. They gave Tatsuya all the carrots and Jin got the jewels.

He still doesn’t say much but that’s just his personality. What Jin knows is that when Tatsuya does have something to say it’s fairly important.

The rabbit boy stirs some chocolate powder into his drink and watches the white milk turn brown. He takes a long sip and surfaces with a chocolate moustache on his face. Koki snorts and Tatsuya blinks at him in mild confusion until Kazuya reaches over to wipe it off.

They hear another distant splash and Koki frowns. “I wonder who’ll give up first. The Captain or the prince?”

“Dad has infinite patience,” Kazuya shrugs. “If the prince can test that, that’ll be impressive.”

They end up drinking until about two in the morning and Taguchi is still being thrown off the ship. It’s telling that he’s able to get back on when the Captain could easily just take the gangway off the ship and leave the poor prince on the harbour. It basically means that the Captain is willing to negotiate but nothing Taguchi is saying so far is working.

It does Taguchi some credit as well that he keeps trying even after he’s thrown overboard for the hundredth time.

To ensure that Taguchi doesn’t do anything stupid, Jin decides to stay in the tavern overnight rather than go back to the castle. At least that’s what he tells himself. In reality he likes hanging around Kazuya as long as he can and Taguchi is a brilliant excuse to stay in the tavern and thus, stay close to the teenage pirate.

They hear splashing all night. Kazuya takes them to the large bedroom on the second floor of the tavern where they stay when there’s more than two of them. It has two beds and one cot which is more than enough for the four teenage boys as Jin takes a bed, Koki takes the other, Tatsuya takes the cot, and Kazuya is more than happy to top and tail with Jin.

They could get an extra bed in, but by the time they get to the bedroom none of them can be really fucked with the physical effort that involves. Not to mention Jin doesn’t really want to and the fact that Kazuya doesn’t make any effort to find himself a bed tells Jin that Kazuya doesn’t mind their arrangement either.

They could also sleep in different rooms but someone has to stay with Tatsuya. He may have been with the Mercury Pirates for a couple of months now but he still gets nightmares, and when he gets into that zone it’s hard to snap him out of it. The unpredictable rabbit can be violent, he can run away, he can forget everything, and Jin’s learnt by now that Tatsuya has to be watched and guarded to avoid a similar incident with the dogs.

Koki, who’s had too much to drink, passes out almost immediately. Tatsuya morphs into his rabbit form and curls up on his cot. Jin watches him twitch in his sleep and frowns. He wonders if Tatsuya prefers being a rabbit or a human more.

“What was attacking him on the Moon Islands?” he asks Kazuya when he’s sure the other two are unconscious. He’s sitting up in bed with Kazuya sitting up on the other end, their feet nestled beside each other and a blanket covers them both.

“Wolves,” Kazuya replies simply. “Huge wolves.”

“How big?” Jin frowns. He knows what a wolf looks like but there are none on his land and those on Kanjani aren’t actually that big.

“Taller than my father and bigger than a bear,” Kazuya explains with a slightly haunted and dark look on his face. “They silently prowled the forests. Fast creatures. I found Tatsuya in a trap, got him out, and just ran for it.”

Jin shivers when he thinks about Kazuya running through those forests, being chased by enormous shadows that move much faster than him. He’d risked his life to save Tatsuya and there was something special in the boy that only he could see. Jin found a certain charm to Tatsuya’s silent stoicness and the amusing way he found simple things fascinating, but Kazuya treated him as something precious.

Jin recalls what he knows about the Moon Islands and frowns when he realises something. “I don’t remember learning about wolves in my lessons. When did wolves get there?”

Kazuya blinks. He glances at Tatsuya and when he’s sure the other is asleep he turns back to Jin.

“There’s a legend,” he tells him quietly. “About the rabbits on Moon Islands. Apparently, that island is a hotspot of all kinds of magical things. Legend has it that the rabbits can turn into anything else too. Humans, birds...even wolves.”

Jin frowns and looks at Tatsuya. “So...he could turn into a wolf?”

“According to legend, yes,” Kazuya says. He then looks contemplative. “But that doesn’t really make sense. Because if that’s true, then it means that Tatsuya was attacked by his own kind.”

Jin shrugs. “Well, maybe not all the rabbits get along?”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Kazuya says again. “Humans are one thing, but animals aren’t known for betraying another of their own kind. At least not the ones on the Moon Islands. Whatever happened, it’s recent.”

“You think something was disturbing them?” Jin tilts his head curiously. “Who would?”

Kazuya shrugs. “There’s a lot of things that happen outside this island. Most of it is never explained, but the Moon Islands weren’t always so dangerous. Whatever happened, I’m pretty sure someone’s behind it.”

Jin wonders if he could launch an inquiry into that but he knows he probably won’t be allowed. The Moon Islands are not in his area, it’s not under his protection, and he has no rights to it. Nobody does. To suddenly start poking his nose in it now would cause other kingdoms to react and Jin can’t break the peace between them now.

They hear another distant splash and Kazuya counts. “Seventy-two.”

Jin glances at Tatsuya and Kazuya turns his eyes to him.

“Hey,” he says. “Can I ask?”

Jin blinks at him and Kazuya continues. “Koki once told me you’re half-robot,” he says. “Is that—I mean, is that common amongst kings?”

Jin nods calmly. “So I’m told.”

“Do you have anything...robot-y?” Kazuya asks, leaning in a little. “Like...like do you have wires under your skin? Or a touchpad somewhere?”

Jin laughs and shakes his head. “I have blood under my skin and veins too.”

“Then how do you know you’re a robot?” Kazuya asks curiously. “You look perfectly human to me.”

“I can hear the advisors,” Jin says. “They’re a whisper in my head. Advisors only talk to kings.”

Kazuya tilts his head and Jin sighs. He pulls his hair up and turns around to show Kazuya the back of his neck. His skin is raised at the nape of his neck, markings forming a barcode, and it’s the only physical proof that Jin is actually not entirely human.

Kazuya leans in. He reaches a gentle hand and pokes the raised skin, causing Jin to shiver in response. Kazuya rests his fingers gently on the barcode and studies it closely. “That’s...wow.”

Jin suddenly feels quite glad that Kazuya can’t see his face because Kazuya’s cold fingers on his skin are making him shiver for more than one reason. Part of him wishes the boy won’t stop touching him.

When the boy pulls his fingers away—far too soon for Jin’s liking—he leans back again and lets Jin turn around. But Kazuya doesn’t sit back on his side of the bed, instead he stays seated in the middle and much closer. Jin feels his breath hitch when he sees Kazuya so close and lets his hair fall back over the barcode.

He can’t read the look on Kazuya’s face. He doesn’t know what the boy is thinking. Kazuya hums in thought. “Koki said kings don’t love either. Is that true?”

Jin’s mind races with premature hope and he chuckles nervously. “Why did you want to know that?”

“Dad says every creature can love something. Even if it’s inanimate,” Kazuya explains quietly. “I find it difficult to believe one can’t. You can’t go through this world without caring about something. Being attached to something, someone. It’s part of what makes you human.”

“I love my kingdom,” Jin shrugs and he’s not sure if that’s him talking or his advisors. They tell him what to do, what to think, what to love, and what to hate. He is controlled entirely by them and yet, on a certain level, Jin knows he has some control over his own mind.

After all, he’s not entirely sure about this but he’s got a feeling that his reaction to Kazuya is more human than the advisors would want him to be. He’s never heard of a king who gets butterflies at the sight of a pretty little pirate like Kazuya.

Kazuya watches him and Jin can’t quite read him. Kazuya looks like he wants to know more about what Jin is, what he can and can’t do. Jin meets his eyes and the pirate swallows hard. He reaches a hand out and closes cold fingers over Jin’s elegant ones.

The pirate squeezes his hand and Jin watches him curiously. He suddenly finds himself wondering what it would be like to kiss Kazuya. He knows—for sure this time—that kissing another is definitely not what a king is supposed to do, but at this moment it’s all Jin wants.

The room is dark, he can distantly hear Koki snoring and thinks nothing of it. Kazuya’s eyes are surprisingly intense and Jin daringly inches his face a little closer. He sees Kazuya do the same and takes that as permission to close the space between their faces.

Their noses bump at first. Kazuya utters a small laugh and finds Jin’s lips with his own. Jin’s eyes flutter shut and he squeezes Kazuya’s hand in his. Kazuya’s lips are slightly chapped and the boy smells of whisky but Jin finds himself not actually minding that. His usual scent of vanilla is just underneath that and his lips actually feel sort of nice. Jin isn’t sure if his heart is still beating or is beating so fast it’s humming instead and he decides he doesn’t care. Kazuya feels nice against him and he’s just about to bring his other hand up to touch Kazuya’s hair when a noise makes both boys spring away from each other.

Kazuya looks at Tatsuya’s cot first. The rabbit is awake but that’s not the problem. The problem is that he gets about one split second before Tatsuya sprints out of the cot and dashes for the door.

“Wait!” Kazuya cries, springing out of the bed to run after him.

Jin follows and the two race down the stairs after the rabbit. Tatsuya sprints out the door and into the night and Jin is hot on Kazuya’s heels as they follow him out towards the main road.

Now, Jin doesn’t know where Tatsuya thinks he’s going but he’s sort of learnt that when Tatsuya gets nightmares logic isn’t really on the cards. Still, as the rabbit races towards the docks he hears the sound of Taguchi climbing out of the water again and back onto the docks just as the rabbit rushes onto it.

“Stop!” Kazuya shouts. “Tatsuya!”

Jin runs and watches as the rabbit races ahead, runs onto the boardwalk, rushes after Taguchi, and jumps onto his leg. The prince lets out a yell of surprise and looks down just in time to see the rabbit scuttling up his leg, up his body and into his arms.

Taguchi holds the rabbit as Kazuya and Jin, breathless and panting, finally catch up and stop in front of him.

“Tatsuya,” Kazuya pants.

Jin is breathless as well but he notices the rabbit is a hell of a lot calmer in Taguchi’s arms. Taguchi blinks in confusion before running a gentle finger between Tatsuya’s floppy ears. He twitches in response and relaxes visibly in his hold.

“This is your pet?” Taguchi asks, awkwardly aware he’s holding something that seems to belong to Kazuya.

“He’s Tatsuya,” Kazuya explains breathlessly. “A rabbit from the Moon Islands.”

“Oh,” Taguchi looks at him again and Jin thinks that Taguchi actually knows what those are. It would make sense, the Prince of Thieves travels the world as much as pirates. Surely he’s seen something like Tatsuya before and surely he’d know that the rabbit in his arms can morph into a teenage boy at will.

“He seems to like you,” Jin can’t help but note.

“Um...yeah, I think so,” Taguchi pets Tatsuya’s head and the rabbit relaxes more, sinking into his arms until his nose is just barely visible, twitching against the damp fabric of Taguchi’s shirt.

Jin looks up at the ship and notices Kazuya’s father watching them as well. He, like everyone, knows how bad Tatsuya gets when he has his nightmares. Kazuya may be his primary protector but even he can’t calm him down like Taguchi is now.

Taguchi tries to give Tatsuya back to Kazuya but the rabbit isn’t having any of it. The second he comes anywhere near Kazuya’s arms, he scrambles and digs his claws in Taguchi’s shirt until the other gets the hint.

“Okay, okay,” Taguchi yelps and grabs Tatsuya. “I’ll carry you.”

Kazuya stares at the two for a moment and turns to Jin. Jin just shrugs, it’s as odd as it seems. That Tatsuya would find Taguchi—of all people—so comforting.

Kazuya looks up at his father. “Dad,” he says. “We’re keeping him.” He points to Taguchi.

His father looks skeptical for a moment, but when he looks at Tatsuya he somehow seems to understand the situation. Tatsuya is one of theirs but he’s so unpredictable. If they can find someone who can calm him, someone he seems to like being near, then it only makes sense to keep that person around.

Tatsuya chose Taguchi Junnosuke.

The Captain nods. “Fine,” he sighs and disappears inside to go to bed.

Taguchi stares in disbelief. He looks at Kazuya. “Really?”

Kazuya glances at the rabbit in Taguchi’s arms and shrugs. “Don’t thank me,” he says. “Thank him.”

He turns around and heads back towards the tavern. Jin, after a moment, follows. The two of them leave Taguchi holding the rabbit in his arms and looking rather stunned but happy.

That’s how Taguchi Junnosuke becomes part of the Mercury Pirates.

-

Jin meets Nakamaru Yuichi, unfortunately, when Kazuya’s father gets sick. Jin is sixteen and they’re nearing Kazuya’s fifteenth birthday  when Kazuya’s father, fresh from a trip north, comes back looking pale like the dead and ill like the dying.

He goes through the village doctors who don’t know what’s wrong with him and then he gets seen by the royal doctors who also can’t figure it out. He can’t get out of bed, sweats all day, can’t eat, can’t sleep, and Kazuya starts getting really scared.

“He’s going to die if we don’t do anything,” Kazuya says to Jin. They’re in the tavern and Kazuya isn’t functioning properly. He isn’t sleeping either and it’s obvious by the bags under his eyes and the fact that he’s lost weight.

Jin shivers, he’s never seen Kazuya like this and it scares him. “What can I do?”

Kazuya shakes his head. He doesn’t know what to do either. They’ve tried all the medical experts in the kingdom, none of them know what’s wrong with him.

“Where was he?” Jin asks. “When he got sick?”

“We were stationed on Vena Island,” Kazuya mumbles. “He went off on his own...said he heard something and then…”

Jin can’t help himself. He reaches over to take Kazuya’s hand and the others look at it but say nothing. Jin doesn’t care either, he’s worried too. He likes the Captain of the Mercury Pirates. Kazuya’s father is the kind of man who can relax, take things easy, and doesn’t sweat the small things. Maybe it’s because he travels, maybe it’s because he’s seen more of the world than Jin will ever see, but he knows what’s important and what isn’t. His open mind was the kind Jin had always respected and it shines in Kazuya’s own mind too.

Koki takes another drink, Tatsuya looks down, and Taguchi pretends he hadn’t seen the exchange.

“I might know of someone,” he says. “He’s a survivor from B.B.D. His name is Nakamaru Yuichi.”

B.B.D. had a massive earthquake, tsunami, and volcanic eruption in one week. It was a young island and not many people were living on it to begin with. No one actually knew what B.B.D. stood for and since it's natural destruction nobody was ever going to find out either.

“Where is he now?” Koki asks.

“He kind of floats between islands trying to make a living,” Taguchi says with a wince. “He’s not that easy to get hold of. But he says he was a doctor when B.B.D. was...well...still a whole island.”

It’s not much to go on but Jin wonders if a doctor from the outside might be more useful than the ones on his land who don’t know how to deal with exotic illnesses. He looks at Taguchi. “Do you know how to find him?”

“I can try,” Taguchi says. “He tends to avoid the cold and hot areas so he’ll be on the milder islands. Any island where he can be useful. I know he likes cities. He’s scared of a lot of things, especially heights and reptiles.”

“Maybe...he’s on Koyama’s land…” Jin hums and glances at Kazuya.

Kazuya shakes his head. “At this point, Jin, I’ll try anything.”

“Koki,” Jin orders and the joker follows him as they head out of the tavern. Koki follows him back to the castle where Jin leads him back to the courtroom. He doesn’t have any official business but when he wants to get hold of the other kingdoms he uses his advisors.

It’s not easy for outsiders to understand how this works but everything is connected. Everything in the world, especially the kingdoms. Jin is the only one who can hear the advisors, but there is always one communication advisor in each kingdom that can talk to the other advisors all over the world.

She, the only advisor with a bouquet of roses covering her face, is the only one of the advisors with a distinguishing feature and gender. But she, like the other advisors, is silent and only Jin can hear her. He calls her ‘the Rose.’ His only way of communicating with other kings faster than sending someone in his stead.

Koki follows and stops before the throne. He bows to the advisors as Jin approaches the Rose and stops before her. He bows low and stands up straight again to face her properly. Her face is covered by roses and it almost looks unsettling but Jin is far too used to her.

“I need to send a message to Koyama,” he tells her. “I need him to do me a favour. There is a doctor on his islands who may yet be able to save the Captain of Mercury. His name is Nakamaru Yuichi.”

The other advisors whisper to him and Jin nods. “I know. But the Captain is dying and we need the Mercury Pirates for their trade. It’s in our best interests to keep our allies alive, is it not?”

They agree with him on that. The advisors turn their heads towards each other and the Rose stays still. Jin can’t see her eyes but he can feel them. They’re cold, like the invisible guards that keep the peace.

Finally she nods and Jin stands back. He waits. On the stairs, Koki watches the exchange wordlessly as the advisors remain still and lifeless as always. Finally, the Rose turns her head towards Jin and nods again.

“Koyama will send his second to take the doctor to you,” she whispers in his ear without ever coming closer to him. “They will be one week.”

“Thank you,” Jin breathes in relief. “Tell him, ‘thank you.’”

The Rose nods again and Jin turns back to Koki. He follows him out of the castle and sighs in relief. If Kazuya’s father can make it through this week on their resources alone, he might stand a chance when Nakamaru gets here. All they need to do is keep him alive.

Because Jin never wants to see Kazuya upset again.

Over the next agonisingly slow week, Jin orders the royal doctor to keep an eye on the Captain. Kazuya rarely leaves the ship and, because of that, neither do the others. Jin spends his time with the pirates when he can and if he’s stuck he sends Koki in his stead—mostly to make sure Kazuya eats something.

Kazuya doesn’t sleep and his father steadily gets worse. Soon they have to hook him up to something to force some fluids in his body because he can’t keep anything down.

“He’s dying,” Kazuya says to Jin one night when they’re sitting outside on the main deck. Jin’s managed to coax Kazuya out of the lower decks for some fresh air but the boy won’t leave the ship now.

“Don’t say that,” Jin tells him as he sits him down on the main deck. He takes his hands and Kazuya’s fingers are ice cold. Jin heats his own hands with his breath and squeezes Kazuya’s fingers in his own. “Your father is going to live. I’ve got a doctor coming—”

“The crew say he’s dying,” Kazuya replies quietly. “I heard them talking. They said the sickness he got...there isn’t a cure.”

“You can’t give up now,” Jin urges. “If you lose hope, your father has no chance. I have someone coming, your father is going to live. He’s strong, remember?”

Kazuya looks down at his knees. He appears so tiny and vulnerable that all Jin wants to do is gather him in his arms and hold him away from everything that could possibly upset him, but he feels so helpless here. The truth is, he doesn’t know if Nakamaru can save the man. He doesn’t know if the Captain can even be saved at this point. But he has to hope.

It’s all he has left.

“If dad dies I become the captain,” Kazuya tells him in a small voice. “That’s what they were saying. That it should be me.”

Jin doesn’t understand their logic. Sure, Kazuya’s one of their own but he’s also only fifteen years old. Everything he knows about the open sea, about the way pirates live, is ingrained in his upbringing but he’s not old enough to take over an entire crew and ship.

“King of Pirates,” Kazuya breathes and shivers at the thought. He looks at Jin. “I don’t want to. Dad’s the captain.”

“He is the captain,” Jin says. “He’s going to be alright. You have to believe that.”

Kazuya doesn’t look like he knows what to believe now. He leans in and Jin pulls his arm around the other until Kazuya’s face is hidden in his chest. Kazuya’s hands cling to Jin’s shirt, they pull the fabric and Jin doesn’t mind. He thinks of the little pirate he’d met. The one who didn’t give two shits whether he was a king or not. The one who could drink as hard as any other adult, swore more than anyone his age, and was more reckless than anyone Jin had ever met.  Jin thinks he’d die to protect that boy and it’s the first time he’s ever considered someone else, a human being, more important than himself and his kingdom.

It’s a forbidden thought. Jin knows this, but still it’s there and it won’t go away.

He keeps Kazuya outside. Being inside is making him sick. They stay awake until the sunrise lights the sky in a rare purple hue streaking across the sky. Then Kazuya falls asleep against Jin. Exhausted and worried and scared but as safe as he could ever be.

Nakamaru Yuichi arrives two days later with Koyama’s second, Yamashita Tomohisa, in tow. It’s not the first time Jin’s met Yamashita. In fact, he’s known the boy as long as he’s known his king. Yamashita—Jin calls him Yamapi because of Koyama’s habit of dressing his second in pink clothing —is one of the few people in the royal circles that Jin actually loves hanging out with.

There aren’t many. He knows Koyama, the gentle king in the neighbouring kingdom, but he’s always clicked more with Yamapi. Koyama actually has two second-in-commands who do his bidding and often get sent out on diplomatic missions if Koyama can’t do them himself. Yamapi is one. Nishikido Ryo is the other. Nishikido is also a rare kind of person called a _switch_.

“What’s that?” Koki had asked one night when the subject had been brought up.

“A switch has two bodies and can occupy one at a time,” Yamapi had explained. “Ryo works for Koyama and is his citizen, but he’s also a citizen of the Kanjani Islands. When they need him there he switches to his body over there.”

“And what happens to the other body when he’s not using it?” Koki frowns.

“It goes to sleep until he comes back,” Yamapi shrugs. “Pretty simple. If one body ever dies, then Ryo has one more left. Essentially that just means the lucky bastard has two lives.”

It makes sense that Koyama sends Nakamaru with Yamapi and not with Ryo. Given the fact that he is obligated and pledged to two kingdoms, there’s no telling when he’ll need to be in either and, in that way, he’s fairly unreliable for missions like these.

“Nakamaru Yuichi,” Yamapi introduces the doctor after they enter the courtroom.

Nakamaru is tall, gangly, and thin. Jin notices he must have been in Koyama’s lands for some time because some of his clothes—namely his sweater—are pink. It’s Koyama’s signature. Nakamaru himself has dark hair, dark eyes, and an awkward, nervous smile. He looks unfairly average next to Yamapi, who is shorter than him but beautiful and seems to sparkle just a bit in the courtroom.

Jin is still convinced that Koyama chose Nishikido and Yamapi as his seconds because they’re both pretty.

Jin glances at his advisors, but when he hears no objections he gets up and comes down the stairs, gesturing that Koki follow him too.

“Come with me,” he tells Nakamaru and Yamapi. “There’s not much time.”

He leads them back to the docks and when Nakamaru realises they’re going towards a pirate ship his eyes widen.

“Your patient is here?” he asks with a quiet squeak.

“The Mercury Pirates are under my protection and they do as I say,” Jin assures him. “They won’t harm you.  Just please, do what you can for the Captain. His life is incredibly important.”

Yamapi glances at Nakamaru and gently nudges his back. Nakamaru nods and follows Jin inside where Jin leads him to the Captain’s quarters. There, Kazuya is still sitting next to the bed and he’s surrounded by some of the crew, Tatsuya, and Taguchi.

They look up as Jin enters and Jin gestures to Nakamaru. “He’s a doctor,” he tells them. “Please let him see the Captain.”

Kazuya moves away immediately and the crew clears to let Nakamaru through. He crouches next to the bed, feels the Captain’s head, and looks up. “Please, give me some space and time.”

They clear the room, giving Nakamaru the space he needs. Jin follows Kazuya and the others out onto the main deck where the crisp cold air is extremely refreshing when compared to the sick air that engulfs the quarters.

Yamapi looks around at the others that he doesn’t know and bows. “Yamashita Tomohisa, Yamapi, at your service.”

“Yamapi here is a second to King Koyama,” Jin says to the others.

Kazuya looks at him and frowns. “Oh yeah, I remember you.”

Yamapi sighs. “Yes, I recognised you the second I came onto the ship actually.”

“You two know each other?” Koki asks.

“I stole a necklace from him a couple of years ago,” Kazuya explains.

“And were it not for the situation we’re in, I’d ask for it back,” Yamapi rolls his eyes.

Jin’s pretty sure Kazuya still has the bracelet he stole from Koki when they first met. Koki hasn’t asked for it back either.

Yamapi rests his eyes on Taguchi and hums. “I heard the Prince of Thieves was with the Mercury Pirates. Koyama wasn’t too pleased when he heard about it. But he wasn’t nearly as annoyed as the older kingdoms. Like Kinki and V6. I’d avoid those territories if I were you.”

“Noted,” Taguchi shrinks a little.

Yamapi smirks and turns to Jin. “Can I have a word with you? In private?”

Jin doesn’t want to go too far away from the pirates so he leads Yamapi to a corner away from the others. They lean on the side of the ship and Yamapi sighs. “Koyama sent me for a reason.”

“I figured,” Jin says. “He could have just sent Nakamaru by himself. Sending you means he has another plan.”

“Yes.” Yamapi glances around, checking for eavesdroppers and turns back to Jin. “Something is happening with the other kingdoms. Koyama doesn’t actually know what but there’s some unrest.”

Jin frowns. He hasn’t heard anything about this from his advisors.

“What kind of unrest?” he asks carefully.

“I don’t know, the King won’t tell me,” Yamapi shrugs. “It’s nothing that is worrying the kingdoms in a big way and most, like you, aren’t even noticing it, but Koyama’s been noticing...little things. We’re in a state of peace, he doesn’t think it’s going to last.”

Jin thinks about what Kazuya was saying about the Moon Islands and frowns. “There are wolves on the Moon Islands,” he tells Yamapi in a low, quiet voice. “That’s where Tatsuya is from. I don’t remember ever hearing about wolves there.”

Yamapi looks slightly concerned too. They’re all taught more or less the same things and, although textbooks and history books do not compare to real life experiences, none of them have heard of wolves on the Moon Islands.

“Just...keep it in the back of your mind and try not to let your advisors in on it,” Yamapi tells him quietly. “Koyama doesn’t think the advisors should be trusted.”

“Wait, why not?” Jin frowns in confusion. “They’re the advisors, they run the kingdoms. Of course, they should be told about it.”

“Jin, if Koyama is correct and there is something going on, why haven’t the advisors told you about it yet?” Yamapi presses, his tone quiet but urgent. “Even something small like this?”

Jin struggles to imagine that his advisors are not on his side. It doesn’t make any sense anyway. He blinks at Yamapi. “Maybe they didn’t think it important enough for me to worry about yet.”

“Jin, just...keep it to yourself for now,” Yamapi tells him. “They say a great king is one who listens to his advisors but something is going on. I trust Koyama on that.”

Jin swallows hard and manages a small nod. It’s not the first time he’s ever had to keep anything from his advisors—after all he still hasn’t told them about how Kazuya kissed him or how Kazuya’s smile makes Jin’s world go upside down with fluffy pink hearts—but this is fairly serious.

“Tell your King I want to talk to him in private sometime,” he says.

Koyama is one of the few kings he actually trusts. His treaty with his kingdom is fairly strong but it’s not just that. It’s the fact that Koyama is one of the more gentle kings and he has never done anything wrong by Jin. For years now, the kingdoms have lived in general peace and order but if Koyama is right about this that peace and order is not going to last.

It’s a disturbing thought indeed that the next war could be caused by the advisors themselves.

But the reason why Jin wants to talk to Koyama is not just because Koyama might know something other kings do not. It’s because Koyama, like Jin, is half-robot. Jin is having some confusing feelings right now towards Kazuya and he doesn’t know if this is supposed to happen, if it’s common amongst other kings. He needs someone to talk to.

Koyama is his safest bet.

“I’ll relay the message,” Yamapi promises and rubs Jin’s arm in familiar camaraderie. “Jin,” he says. “Just be careful. Alright?”

Jin nods and smiles in relief. He likes Yamapi. Although Yamapi’s allegiances and loyalties lie with his own King, he shows genuine care and concern for Jin and it’s rare in a person who isn’t his own subject. If Yamapi were half-robot himself, Jin would talk to him about his confusing feelings, but while he knows Yamapi won’t condemn him for feeling like this, he can’t relate. The only people who can are kings themselves.

They head back to the main deck to find everyone just where they left them. Jin watches Tatsuya patting Kazuya’s back and Taguchi trying to cheer him up with horrible jokes about pirates. Koki just watches him intently and it’s him who seems to be getting through to Kazuya the most.

Jin settles with them and Kazuya takes his eyes off Koki and onto Jin instead.

“Jin,” Kazuya looks up at him and for a moment, seems quite troubled. Like he doesn’t know what to say, how to get across what’s going on in his head.

Jin looks at him, then looks at the others. Koki is watching Kazuya like he’s going to break, Tatsuya is staying close, and Taguchi is trying harder than usual to be the comedian. Jin doesn’t really know how to fix this but he knows this isn’t what Kazuya wants—to be treated like he could fall to pieces at any minute.

He’s saved by Nakamaru’s timely return. The thin doctor looks troubled as he approaches the group. He looks at Kazuya. “U-um...do you want me to talk to you in private?”

“Yes,” Kazuya says. He stands up and grabs Jin’s hand, dragging him along as Nakamaru leads them back inside where they can talk without fear of someone else hearing them.

Nakamaru glances at the Captain for a moment and turns back to Kazuya. “Vena Island, wasn’t it?”

“You know what’s wrong with him?” Kazuya asks. He hasn’t let go of Jin’s hand.

Nakamaru nods and his face is quite serious and grave as he rubs his hands together. “There’s a new parasite on Vena Island,” he explains tersely. “I don’t know where it came from, and I don’t know what it’s doing here, but I’ve seen this affliction a few times already. Always from Vena Island.”

“A parasite?” Jin frowns. He can’t remember learning about that either. From his studies, he knew Vena to be one of the safest islands and they didn’t mention anything about parasites.

“Large, about the size of a rat and the shape of a cockroach,” Nakamaru explains quietly. “Or so I heard. They started gathering in the southern part of the island and they’re slowly spreading.”

“Can you cure my dad?” Kazuya cuts in impatiently.

Nakamaru shakes his head slowly and bows. “I’m so sorry. The parasite is always fatal. It’s spreading through his system and there’s literally nothing I can do about it. It’s already in his blood.”

Kazuya goes quiet and Jin squeezes his hand. His fingers are cold. He looks at Nakamaru and asks for the little pirate. “How long does he have?”

“He’s already rejecting food and given his breathing…” Nakamaru shakes his head. “Three days at the most but it could be...it’s hard to tell. Three days is what I’d give him.”

Jin looks at Kazuya but his face is so hard to read, stony silence and hard eyes staring at nothing in particular.

“Kazu—”

Kazuya yanks his hand out of Jin’s so fast the other jumps back. He’s out the door and up onto the main deck before Jin even realises what happened.

“Kame!” he yelps, rushing after him.

He gets up on deck just in time to see Kazuya sprinting off the ship. He runs after him and glances at the others, who are confused and shocked, but Jin doesn’t have time to explain. He runs after him and distantly hears Koki and Tatsuya taking off after him, quickly followed by Taguchi, and, eventually, Yamapi.

Kazuya is so fast. He’s faster than Jin’s ever seen him and when they make it to the town he loses Kazuya almost immediately. The little pirate disappears through alleyways and people and Jin can’t see him anymore. Jin stops, he’s breathless and scared out of his mind as Koki and the others catch up.

“What happened?!” Koki demands.

“He’s dying,” Jin pants. “He’s dying and Kame he just…”

Tatsuya frowns and looks around. “We should find him.”

“Not to pitch an unpopular idea but maybe he actually wants to be left alone?” Taguchi suggests uneasily. “I mean...he did run away to get away from us. Maybe he just needs time.”

“He doesn’t have time,” Jin stresses. “Besides, we all know what Kame’s like. Can we actually trust him when he’s alone and upset?”

“Do you really think you’re going to find him if he doesn’t want you to find him?” Yamapi asks with a slightly raised eyebrow. “We could end up searching all night.”

“I don’t care,” Jin says. “We have to find him. Spread out, find him.”

Koki nods and Tatsuya looks torn but ultimately he agrees. They split up and start searching different parts of the kingdom. Jin takes the alleyway he’d seen Kazuya disappear into. He looks in all the places he’d choose to hide in and tries most of the baseball clubs, but Kazuya isn’t there.

At some point he also spots a white rabbit rush past him as he continues in his search.

The search ultimately lasts five hours before Koki finally tracks Jin down and grabs his shoulder.

“Jin,” he says. “We have to call it off. We’re not going to find him and you need to return to the castle.”

“I need to find him,” Jin tells Koki, he can’t help how his voice is shaking with worry and he looks at the other. “The look on his face…Koki…”

“I know,” Koki says and Jin can see it on his face, he’s just as worried. Just as concerned, but he’s right. Yamapi’s right. They’re not going to find Kazuya tonight—especially if he doesn’t want them to.

Jin hears the advisors calling him back for the night and shakes his head. “Tomorrow we’ll look for him again.”

Koki nods and Jin squeezes his shoulder. “Find Ueda and Taguchi. Call them back to the ship to look after the Captain. Bring Yamapi back to the castle to see me. Nakamaru is to stay and try to keep the Captain alive until we find Kazuya.”

Koki heads off and Jin glances around the alleyways and streets but Kazuya isn’t there. He’s nowhere to be found. Jin shivers and reluctantly heads back to the castle. He walks the whole way back and bows his head to the advisors when he comes back to the courtroom.

“You’re late,” they tell him.

“The Captain is dying,” Jin tells them, his head still bowed. “We need our treaty with the Mercury Pirates to stay stable. The trade they bring in is valuable and our kingdom cannot be without it.”

“Then what do you suggest?” they ask. Their voices like a combined whisper in his head.

Jin thinks about Kazuya. The crew were making plans to place him next as their captain. Their king. But Kazuya didn’t want the job, he wanted his father. Jin winces and lifts his head. “Give me some time,” he requests. “The Captain is not dead yet.”

There are other ways they can get their trade. Maybe it won’t be as good as what the Mercury Pirates bring in but it is possible for the kingdom to survive without the pirates. The trouble is that Jin doesn’t want to. He doesn’t want to lose the pirates and it’s not like the Captain’s death is a guarantee that they will, but he needs a backup plan. Something that will secure the pirates and assure them safety even when the Captain dies.

He looks up when Yamapi enters and turns around to face him. Yamapi eyes the advisors warily and bows to them and then to Jin.

“Yamashita,” Jin says for the sake of the advisors. “When did your master need you back on his lands?”

“Soon,” Yamapi replies quietly. “Nishikido is set to switch to the Kanjani Kingdom next week, so I’ll be needed to support the King while he’s gone.”

Jin nods. He thinks about Kazuya in the dark out there somewhere and then thinks about the Captain, dying alone in his bed. He shakes his head. “About Nakamaru…”

Yamapi tilts his head. “For your information, Nakamaru is not a citizen of ours. He just turned up out of the blue and started making himself useful.”

“I would keep him longer,” Jin tells Yamapi. “Would your King be alright with that?”

Yamapi nods. “He has no claim over Nakamaru anyway. If he’d wanted to leave, he could have done so freely. I will let him know I’m leaving without him though.”

Jin nods and Yamapi glances behind him at the advisors again. He turns his eyes back to Jin. “In any case, My Lord, would you be so kind as to see me off?”

Jin follows him out. They leave the eyes of the advisors and Yamapi is silent as they head out of the castle and out onto the grounds. He doesn’t say a word until they’re safely away from the castle walls.

The night outside is cold. It’s freezing and the stars are covered by dark clouds, moonlight shines through them casting a dim glow over his kingdom. Jin frowns when he thinks of Kazuya and suddenly Yamapi stops. He turns and looks at him.

“Jin,” Yamapi sighs. “Just remember what I said. Be careful.”

Jin thinks about the parasite taking over Vena Island and wonders if that is another sign of unrest. Is someone doing this deliberately? If so, why did no one warn him? Why aren’t his advisors saying anything about it? He wants to ask them but Yamapi’s sharp eyes are telling him not to.

“Arrange a meeting between myself and your King,” Jin tells him. “Privately if necessary.”

It’s going to be a lot longer keeping in touch without using their advisors but Koyama doesn’t seem to trust his. It’s so strange to Jin that his advisors are not to be trusted. Every cell in his body is telling him that the advisors always know best, that they’re the ones in charge. If they’re not telling him about the rising unrest there’s a reason for it.

He’s torn between what another king thinks is right and what his own advisors think is right, and it’s foreign to Jin to think that the advisors are not on his side. Yet, the thought sticks like an unnerving, bad idea that won’t go away.

“I’ll tell him,” Yamapi promises and turns on his heel.

Jin watches him disappear into the town below and finally lets his anxiety show on his face. He looks over the township ahead and bites his lip. He hopes that wherever Kazuya is he’s okay.

Kazuya doesn’t come back the next day and Jin can’t do anything about it. It’s like the advisors know something is up because they keep him in the castle too. It kills Jin that he can’t go out and find Kazuya himself, but it puts him at ease to know that Koki and Taguchi are out looking for him.

It’s not until Jin hears of some public disturbances that Jin finally finds out where Kazuya is. The townspeople start reporting a teenage boy who goes around robbing everyone. He steals food, gets into fights, and is actually pretty dangerous to approach and Jin knows it’s him.

He instructs the others to stay on the ship as he is let out to take care of the problem personally. Jin follows the clues the townspeople give him and finally finds Kazuya. It’s night, the moon is high in the sky and the stars are out. Jin can see his breath and it’s freezing but he finds Kazuya in a shirt and pants.

When he gets to the baseball field, Kazuya is whacking balls out of the area. There’s a force of anger behind each hit and Jin is almost afraid to clear his throat and make his presence known.

Almost.

He approaches the other and ducks just before Kazuya can hit him in the head with the bat.

“Fuck off,” Kazuya hisses at him, throwing the bat away and stumbling off. He’s been drinking which means he either got back to the tavern at some point or he robbed a liquor store—it’s probably the latter considering Koki’s been hanging around the tavern just in case Kazuya went there.

“Kame,” Jin tries and comes after him. “You need to—”

“You said he’d be okay!” Kazuya spins to glare at him. “You said he wouldn’t die, that he wouldn’t…” He looks like he’s about to cry but instead he punches Jin’s shoulder. “You lied!”

Jin flinches, it hurts but he doesn’t back down. Kazuya’s angry at him and Jin should leave him to it but he can’t. He has to make sure Kazuya gets back to the ship in time.

“Kame you have to see your father,” he pleads. “You can’t just go around robbing everyone and getting into fights. You’re breaking the treaty.”

“WHO GIVES A FUCK ABOUT THAT TREATY NOW!” Kazuya screams at him. “WHEN MY FATHER DIES, THAT TREATY DIES!”

“Kame, you need to see your father!” Jin pleads, he grabs his shoulders and stops him from bolting on him. “I get that you’re angry—”

“You don’t understand anything!” Kazuya yells, he tries to push Jin back but Jin’s not letting go of him. Kazuya smacks him instead. “You don’t have parents! How can you possibly—”

“I don’t have parents, but if I had a father I’d want him to be like yours!” Jin finally raises his voice a little. It’s the first time he’s ever had to in front of Kazuya and it sort of surprises the young pirate into momentary silence. Jin looks over him pleadingly. “Listen to me. You can blame me all you want but I won’t let you do this. You can’t run from this. Even if you’re angry with me for the rest of your life, I won’t let you miss this. You have to see your father, while you still can.”

Kazuya’s eyes start tearing up but he’s so angry. His teeth are gritted and he stares at Jin in near-disbelief for a moment. His hands perched on Jin’s shoulders are gripping the material so tightly he’s nearly ripping Jin’s shirt in his anger. Finally he smacks Jin again and Jin lets him. Kazuya punches his chest, his arm, he sobs once and slaps Jin’s face—all the while Jin does not let go.

“You lied,” Kazuya sobs, his hits getting weaker and weaker as he sags in Jin’s arms. “You lied! You lied!”

“I’m sorry,” Jin breathes, finally catching Kazuya as the other sinks to the ground. Jin sinks with him and wraps his arms tight around him, hiding his face in his chest as he protects him from the cold and from anyone who could be watching.

Kazuya cries into Jin’s chest and Jin holds him tightly. He sinks his hand in Kazuya’s hair and kisses the top of his head, as if anything he could do or say will make this easier on Kazuya. He knows it won’t but he wishes it would. Jin kisses his head, whispers words of nonsense to him, holds him tighter, and wraps his royal cloak around him to keep him from the cold.

When Jin finally manages to coax Kazuya into moving again he doesn’t know how long they’ve been there, but they’re freezing. Jin can’t feel his fingers and Kazuya can’t stop shivering. Jin keeps his coat around Kazuya as he leads him back to the ship. The boys look up when they see Kazuya coming and step aside. Kazuya leaves Jin’s side as they approach the Captain’s quarters and Jin stops just before the door.

Kazuya looks at him. “Come with me,” he says quietly.

Jin shakes his head. “You need to say goodbye,” he tells him quietly. “That might be easier if you didn’t have me in there.”

The younger doesn’t look like he agrees but he reluctantly lets go of Jin’s hand and goes in alone. The door shuts quietly behind him and Jin takes a deep breath as Koki approaches him.

“Is he…?” Koki asks.

Jin nods solemnly and leans against the wall. He crosses his arms and takes a deep breath. “He’s gonna be…” he pauses. He wants to say Kazuya will be alright—and on some level Jin knows he will be because he has to be—but he loves his father. The Captain of the Mercury Pirates is a rare man. The kind who believes that world experience is more important than any education anyone could ever receive. He’s taught Kazuya the most unconventional things and believed that freedom was one of the things Kazuya needed most.

Kazuya was raised to believe in himself, his own strength. He’d trust nobody else more than his own instincts. He’d see the world and  live as he saw fit. It’s a stark difference to how Jin grew up with whispers in his ears constantly telling him what to do.

Koki rubs Jin’s shoulder and Jin takes another breath. This is actually getting worse and he’s dying to talk about it with someone who understands. Is he supposed to be feeling like this? Is this normal? Do other kings feel these things towards someone else?

Yet, somewhere in the back of his mind Jin knows he’s not supposed to feel like this.

They wait around for a few minutes and eventually Jin goes out onto the main deck to see everyone else. He turns to Nakamaru and bows a little. “Thank you,” he says. “For what you did.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Nakamaru shakes his head. “I couldn’t even—”

“You recognised what it was, which was more than anyone else could do,” Jin points out. “And I need that. I can’t just have doctors who know nothing beyond my borders. I need people like you who do. That is why the Mercury Pirates are so important.”

Nakamaru hums and Jin turns to him. “Would you consider sticking around?”

“Yamashita told me he was going back without me,” Nakamaru says and leans back on the side of the ship. “And to be honest, I wasn’t sure I could make a home over there.”

Jin blinks and Nakamaru glances at the others. Taguchi, the Prince of Thieves, Tatsuya, the rabbit from the Moon Islands, Koki, the Joker, and Kazuya, part of the Mercury Pirates. In a way, none of them really fit in. But that’s possibly the best part about them.

Even Jin doesn’t fit in. Not really. He’s experiencing some pretty confusing feelings and he’s pretty sure kings aren’t supposed to do that.

“I might stick around,” Nakamaru hums and turns his eyes back to Jin. “If you’ll have me.”

Jin sighs in relief and pats his shoulder. “You have no idea how much I need more people from the outside.”

Kazuya comes back up, his face solemn and dark. Jin and the others approach him and he looks down.

“He’s gone,” he murmurs quietly.

Koki takes his shoulder, Tatsuya bows his head, and Taguchi follows suit. Nakamaru bows low and Jin looks over Kazuya. The boy is so small. He’s heartbroken and at the same time he’s numb. Kazuya takes Jin’s hand and squeezes it tight. The others notice this but say nothing.

“Stay here tonight,” Kazuya says in a quiet voice and Jin can hear the advisors calling him back. It’ll hurt if he doesn’t go back but right now he feels it would hurt more if he left Kazuya like this.

“Yes,” he promises.

He bunks with Kazuya in the ship and it’s the first time he’s ever fallen asleep on the ship. Kazuya curls into his chest and Jin can hear the advisors, their combined voices calling him back over and over again. It hurts. His head starts to pound and ache as they punish him for not coming back. Jin closes his eyes and holds back his hisses of pain as he holds Kazuya tight and kisses the top of his head.

It’s not going to kill him, he decides. He struggles to fall asleep with this pain, but when he finally manages it he keeps Kazuya safe and tight in his arms.

The next day they pack the Captain onto a small boat. He’s covered in a sheet with ropes gently keeping the cloth wrapped around him. The crew gently place him in the boat as a small crowd of Jin, Tatsuya, Nakamaru, Koki, Taguchi, and the rest of the crew watch.

They then place the boat in the water with him inside and Kazuya steps forward with a torch in his hand. He glances at Jin once before turning back and setting the Captain, his father, on fire. The boat is then pushed out to sea and the crew of pirates watch as he burns and floats away.

Kazuya is alone at the front. He stands there with the torch, watching until his father is well and truly gone. Jin watches his shoulders and sees a strength there. One that tells him Kazuya will pull through this. Not just because he has to, but because he has the strength to.

It’s from that day onwards that Kazuya is declared the captain of the ship and, although he’s fifteen years old, it's a role he takes with both hands. Jin witnesses him quickly take command of the ship and feels his heart thud painfully in his chest.

Kazuya’s so beautiful Jin can hardly breathe.

-

“Read the charges,” one of the guards say.

Jin is snapped back to reality. He feels the chains tight around his wrists and moves his head to look at the judge.

The courtroom. The sentencing. Jin shivers and feels the eyes of his subjects, his people, staring at him and he can’t tell if they sympathise with him or if they hate him for what he did. Whatever that was. He can’t even really remember how this happened, how he got here, or where the others are.

His hair flops, damp and dripping over his face as he feels the guards, the vampires, hold him still. One wrong move...just one, and...it would be the end of him.

The judge of the courtroom is rarely brought out. In fact, his job is useless unless Jin isn’t able to do it. Usually, when crimes need to be judged in the kingdom, Jin does it. But because Jin is the king and currently can’t judge his own trial, the judge is brought out.

He’s as faceless as the advisors. All of whom stand in a line at the back of the courtroom. Silently watching over the proceedings. Jin can feel them glaring, though he knows they don’t have eyes. He can hear them whispering, though he knows they don’t have mouths.

The judge looks just like them. His only distinguishing feature is a mouth.

“Akanishi Jin, King of the Realm of Mars, is hereby found guilty of the following charges,” he says, his voice booming over the courtroom and shaking the ground. Jin closes his eyes and listens. “Neglect of his own kingdom. Piracy. Conspiring with enemy realms. Ignoring his own advisors. Falling in Love.”

Jin looks up. Love? That was one of his crimes? That was a crime?

He thinks about Kazuya and looks at the judge but the judge isn’t looking at him. Jin turns his eyes towards the crowd and his people are glaring at him. He doesn’t know what they’re even angry for. Were they angry because they think he neglected them? Was it because he didn’t act like the kings before him have? Was it because he fell in love with a pirate?

_He’s dead,_ the advisors whisper in his ears and Jin’s blood freezes.

_He’s dead,_ they whisper over and over again. _He’s dead, he’s dead._

“No…” Jin gasps and struggles against his restraints. “NO!”

_He’s dead,_ they say. Their combined voices almost demonic in tone and Jin cries, pain streaks through his chest at the thought and he struggles against his chains.

“NO!” he screams. “NO!!!”

Cold hands, the hands of the vampires, clamp around his arms and Jin fights against them. He kicks . He screams. He cries as he’s wrenched up onto his feet.

“NO!” Jin cries out.

Jin fights. He kicks and tries to punch but they drag him out of the courtroom, his screams echoing on the walls as he leaves.

-

Three months after Jin turns eighteen his tutor changes his lesson plan and introduces to him a new textbook.

Jin scrunches his nose at the sight of it. It’s huge, has a million pages, and Jin just wants to go out and play. He hasn’t seen Kazuya in months and when the Mercury Pirates set sail they took everyone but Jin and Koki. Jin’s thankful he still has Koki, but he misses Kazuya more than he thinks he should.

“This time,” his tutor tells him as he drops the book in front of Jin with a loud, dusty _WHUMP_. “You’re going to learn about the vampires.”

Jin pauses and thinks about the invisible, cold monsters that guard his kingdom. He looks at his tutor. “I thought I already did.”

“No, this time you’ll focus on them,” his tutor tells him. “A king should know about the creatures who protect his castle.”

Jin wonders if they protect as much as they harm. They may be invisible, but Jin can always feel them around and it’s not just the cold that sets the hairs on the back of his neck. There’s always a sense of danger, of unease, around the creatures.

“First thing to know,” the tutor explains. “The Vampires of Old are invisible to all but their own kind.”

“I already knew that,” Jin cuts in with a frown.

“If they bite you, that doesn’t necessarily mean you will turn into them,” the tutor continues as if Jin hadn’t interrupted him. “They feed off the living, they need blood to survive. They can take memories and add new ones. They can control their victims. Vampires are far more powerful than we let people believe.”

Jin frowns. “What do you mean they add memories?”

“The vampires are masters of manipulation. They can control weaker minds and no minds are weaker than that of humans,” the tutor explains and nods to Jin. “Which is why you’re probably safer than most. You’re only half-human.”

It’s on the tip of Jin’s tongue to ask if he might actually be more than half but he holds it in.

“But here’s the most important part about their behaviour,” the tutor says. “Vampires run in groups. They, like some animal species, respond and follow a leader. An alpha.”

“So, how is an alpha made?” Jin asks. There has to be some way the advisors are controlling these dangerous creatures, and were it up to Jin they wouldn’t be in his kingdom at all.

But it’s not up to him. It never is.

“They are born,” the tutor explains. “When an alpha is born it’s in their blood. Vampires will follow his or her will to the end of the earth. Our current vampires have no alpha, so they follow the will of the advisors.”

Jin thinks that probably works out better for the advisors. That’s how they’d want it.

“What do vampires look like?” Jin asks. “The last textbook you gave me only had drawings of monsters.”

“To be honest, nobody but the vampires know what they look like,” the tutor says. “Not enough is known about them. But what we do currently know is that they are under your command here and they are there to protect and serve.”

Jin wonders how true that really is.

It’s about a month after this lesson that Koyama arrives by ship and Jin is informed of his arrival—not through the advisors, but through Tegoshi Yuya.

It’s night. Jin is in his bedchambers when Tegoshi Yuya sneaks through the window like the ninja he is and jumps on Jin’s bed. Jin nearly screams and he would have woken the entire castle had it not been for Tegoshi’s hand firm over his mouth.

“Shh,” the blonde whispers to him.

Jin blinks. He’s only met Tegoshi Yuya once before. The last time he made a royal tour to Koyama’s land, he’d met the King and all his royal followers. Tegoshi was responsible for recon and silent missions. He was kind of the Master of Stealth and could get in and out of anywhere without detection.

Jin once heard that the Mercury Pirates really wanted him but for one reason or another, Tegoshi was fiercely loyal to Koyama.

“Shhh,” Tegoshi whispers to Jin and slowly removes his hand.

Jin sits up and stares at him.  He glances at the door but it’s shut firmly. He turns back to Tegoshi. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Tegoshi grins, his cutesy face brightening tenfold as he wiggles his hips where he’s sitting, straddled on Jin’s crotch. “I wanted to see how the King of Mars fucks,” he giggles.

Jin glares and Tegoshi pats his head. “My King is here to see you,” he tells him. “In private.”

“And he sends you to give me a heartattack,” Jin grumbles but this is serious. He’s never known Koyama to be so careful and the fact that he’s doing this means he really doesn’t trust his advisors. It means something has happened and, although Jin has not heard any news from his own advisors, he knows he can’t ignore this.

If something is happening, if war is coming, if there is unrest, then he’d rather know.

“Take me to him.”

Tegoshi may be a ninja but Jin isn’t and it takes forever for Tegoshi to guide Jin out the window and down the vines to the ground again. He points out which parts to look out for and what looks like a slippery and unsafe place to put his foot.

“Not when it’s shiny,” Tegoshi says, catching Jin’s leg when the other slips above him. Jin clings to the wall for dear life and curses Koyama’s suspicions. If they could just trust their advisors, then they’d be able to meet without Jin breaking his neck in the process.

Eventually he gets down safely and Tegoshi grabs his wrist, leading Jin through the silent gardens, past the outdoor guards, and out towards the docks. Jin is taken onto a ship that has quietly docked there. When he ends up standing in front of Koyama in the King’s quarters, he looks windswept, sweaty, and scruffy. Completely unlike the king he is and nothing like the king Koyama looks like.

Koyama blinks at him and smiles apologetically, bowing in his nightclothes. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I had no idea Tegoshi would be so rough with you.”

“That’s the first time I’ve ever scaled the wall of my castle and I hope it’s the last,” Jin admits and bows in return. “But it’s good to see you again.”

He spots Yamapi standing in the corner with Nishikido Ryo beside him. Nishikido hasn’t changed, same dark hair and dark eyes that always seem to look as though he’s pissed off and amused at the same time. To most of the world, Nishikido Ryo is as scary as he is attractive. Jin’s probably one of the few people in the world who knows that Nishikido is actually not as scary as he pretends to be.

Koyama gestures to the small table at their side and Jin takes a seat with him. Yamapi and Ryo leave the room and when they’re gone Koyama turns to Jin.

“I’m glad you haven’t told your advisors about the unrest I’m suspecting,” Koyama says.

“How do you know I haven’t told them?” Jin asks. He hasn’t told them anything but it’s still weird not to.

“Because my advisors would be on me if you had,” Koyama replies simply. “I’ll just lay it out, because it’s not simple. But that unrest...I’m pretty sure it’s happening. I’m not just suspicious anymore. I’m almost certain.”

Jin thinks about the wolves on Moon Islands and about the parasite on Vena and nods in agreement. There’s a perfectly reasonable explanation as to why his advisors haven’t told him about those things, sure, but Jin doesn’t think he should have been kept in the dark about it.

What if there are other parasites? What if there are dangers—new and unforeseen dangers—nearing his own land? What if the Mercury Pirates run into this kind of thing again? They’ve already done it twice and it doesn’t help thinking about that when Jin sees them off and watches Kazuya’s figure fade further and further away into the distance until he and his ship are but a speck on the horizon.

The reality that Kazuya is in danger every time he and his ship leave Jin’s shores...it just makes Jin want to grab the boy and tell him to never leave.

He never does that, of course, Kazuya would deck him, but he wants to.

“There’s a parasite on Vena that killed one of my allies,” Jin tells him simply. “And there are wolves on Moon Islands.”

“Yes, Yamapi told me about those.” Koyama nods. “I looked into that. There’s more disturbances and they’re all out on the outer regions. Whoever—whatever—is causing trouble isn’t daring to come anywhere near the main kingdoms.”

“Have you talked to anyone else about this?” Jin asks, he tries to think of other kings he could trust personally and comes up woefully short.

Koyama shakes his head. “I considered approaching Kanjani but they’re the furthest away from all of this. Nishikido knows about my suspicions but he hasn’t brought them up with Subaru.”

Jin nods and Koyama looks troubled. After all, it has to be just as hard for him to go behind his advisors backs on this but he seems compelled to. Something has forced him to take action and do so alone. He meets Jin’s eyes. “Something is happening,” he tells him. “I don’t know what but these disturbances, these changes, they’re not coincidence.”

Jin agrees with that. These changes hurt people, they kill people, and they’re all happening at the same time. Something out there is moving, silently disturbing the other islands.

“So what do you need me to do?” he asks.

“Nothing yet,” Koyama replies and Jin can see his mind whirring behind his eyes. “But...just...stay with these things in mind and try to send a second to me if something comes up.”

Jin nods and Koyama leans in. “Now, as for why I’m here...you’re the one who asked for me?”

Jin freezes. He’d asked for Koyama to do this a long time ago and he’s almost forgotten why he needed to talk to another king. Almost. Not really. He’s reminded everytime he sees Kazuya’s smile that he needs to sort his own head out because this isn’t going away. It’s actually just getting worse.

After all, Kazuya is seventeen now. He’s the captain of his own pirate ship and he’s a damn good one at that. Jin doesn’t know what he’s doing but he’s pulling in three times the amount of goods and things his father used to bring in. Being associated with the Mercury Pirates is actually turning into quite a lucrative deal for Jin.

But Jin knows, somewhere in his mind, that he’s not supposed to feel like this.

“Koyama,” he begins, not even sure how he can explain this. “We’re all half-robot—that’s how the advisors work with us.”

“Since the beginning of time, that’s how the kings work,” Koyama nods. “That’s common knowledge.”

“We live to serve the realm we are charged with,” Jin says, almost repeating the teachings ingrained into his mind as though they were installed there. “We serve as the mouthpieces of the advisors and we love nothing more than our own realm and people.”

“Yes…” Koyama frowns, he’s not sure where Jin’s going with this.

Jin takes a deep breath and meets Koyama’s eyes properly. “What if we find something we love more than our own realm?” he asks slowly. “What if I did…?”

Koyama pauses, he looks like he’s not entirely sure how to react. He leans in. “You—you can feel?”

“I think I can _love_ ,” Jin replies quietly and he shivers. Koyama’s reaction alone tells him that he doesn’t feel the same.

Koyama watches him carefully and takes a slow breath. “So, if you had to choose…?”

Choose between his own kingdom that he should love and die for or choose Kamenashi Kazuya? The answer comes out of Jin before he even really has to think about it.

“I’d choose him,” he says, his voice much quieter. “Without blinking.”

Koyama is quiet for a long time. He stares at Jin and Jin doesn’t know if he’s judging him or sympathising—or both. He shrinks a little and finally Koyama hums. “Well, that’s definitely something you can’t tell your advisors.”

“I know,” Jin mutters and he really does. He knows this part is frowned upon and he doesn’t necessarily know if it’s illegal, but it’s one of those invisible clauses that nobody talks about but everybody knows.

“Kings don’t love,” Koyama hums. “Kings don’t feel. I mean, I can tell you quite safely that I don’t and can’t feel anything like that. I’ve always wondered what it would be like, but I just...can’t.”

Jin shivers and Koyama turns his eyes on him. “Jin, it might be possible you’re more human than the advisors think you are.”

“How is that possible?” Jin wants to whine. “Every king in the history of every kingdom is half and half. Fifty percent robot, fifty percent human. All human instincts and urges—like the want to have sex and fall in love—is programmed out. How was that missed for me?”

“You might actually be sixty percent human,” Koyama shrugs. “That’s the only reasoning I can come up with. It’s never happened before, but if you can love that’s the only explanation I can think of.”

Jin takes a long breath and shakes his head. “Well, even if I am sixty percent human, how do I deal with that?”

“You do what you feel is best,” Koyama advises. “Look, Jin, you’re a rare being here. You’re a king who can love. There has never been a king like that in the history of kings. Don’t be a robot when you’re not.”

“But the advisors—”

“You may be the first king to love but you’re not the first king to avoid his advisors. I don’t think you should make this harder on yourself. Do you know what I would give to be able to feel that way towards something or someone else?” Koyama sits up straight. “I must love my kingdom. I know that but...but I see people, I see couples, and I wonder what that must be like. You have a chance to do that.”

Jin winces and Koyama shakes his head. “Jin, don’t let this slip away. If you can do it, experience what no other king experiences and be a king at the same time...why are you stopping yourself?”

“Because I wouldn’t be the first king to be arrested and imprisoned for not being the king I’m supposed to be?” Jin offers.

“Well, then you just have to decide what’s more important. Do you want to live as a king, feel what you feel but deny yourself actually acting on it for fear of prosecution, or do you want to risk it and experience what no other king ever has?” Koyama questions.

Jin nods. So he’s alone in this. He’s the only king who feels like this. The idea makes him feel so alone but it’s also a crushing reality check. It confirms what he already knows: That he’s a king who can love.

“Is that so bad?” Koyama asks gently. “Just be careful.”

Jin smiles but it can’t reach his eyes yet. He’s distracted and he needs to think about this—weigh up the pros and cons, see if he can even come to a decision on the matter at all.

He sneaks back into the castle with the help of Tegoshi and slips into bed in deep thought. The first king in history who can love, can he really be faulted for feeling something that seems to come so naturally? He feels like he’s two people, one part is the king and the other part...well, he doesn’t know which one he should trust more.

He falls into a restless sleep. His thoughts will be just as confusing in the morning as they are now.

-

Kazuya returns with the Mercury Pirates about three months later. Jin’s been learning all the final ropes of being a king from his advisors and they’re starting to reach a point where they don’t need to tell him how to do his job. They’ve raised him to do it the way they want and their whispers in his head only happen if there’s something new. Rarely do they need to correct him or tell him how to respond.

He makes the decision to head out onto the docks to greet the pirates himself and when he sees Kazuya, fresh faced from his latest voyage and looking more beautiful than ever, Jin can’t help his reaction. Kazuya is on the main deck watching the crew carrying boxes and boxes of cargo down to the docks. Tatsuya lingers close to him, watching the sea as Taguchi lazes about on one of the hammocks with Nakamaru seemingly content to use him as shade as he sits underneath it trying to read something.

Jin works his way through the crew muttering small and brief greetings before he makes it out on deck. He sees Kazuya notice him, sees the other brighten with his smile before Jin grabs him and kisses him in plain sight of everyone.

‘ _Be careful_ ’, Koyama had said. That was not going through Jin’s mind now.

He hears Nakamaru cough awkwardly and Taguchi saying something about Tatsuya being too rabbit to see this before he finally pulls away and belatedly realises what he’s done.

Kazuya’s face is bright pink and his eyes are  wide but his hand is holding Jin’s so tightly.

“Well,” Kazuya coughs awkwardly. He looks away shyly and grins to himself. “I’m back.”

“We-welcome back,” Jin mutters.

Tatsuya just laughs at them both.

“Kinki Island was…” Kazuya pauses, trying to find the right words to describe the area adequately. “...Nice.”

They’re sitting back in the tavern. The six of them crowded around a round table with very different drinks. Under the table Kazuya still has Jin’s hand. He hasn’t let it go since he got back.

“Nice?!” Taguchi laughs, spluttering his juice out. “It was horrible! Domoto is a tyrant!”

“Which one?” Tatsuya questions.

“Both of them!”

Kinki Island is the only kingdom with two kings instead of one. Domoto Tsuyoshi and Domoto Koichi have often been described as lovers, twins, brothers, and one and the same person. It hurts Jin’s head less if he doesn’t try to think about how connected the two are and simply leaves it as they’re two kings.

“I’ve met Domoto Koichi,” Koki says and turns to Jin. “When we had to renegotiate a treaty with them.”

Jin groans and tries not to think about the headache that day had caused. He squeezes Kazuya’s hand under the table and finishes his beer, tapping the table for another one.

“The Domoto Kings aren’t easy to deal with,” he admits and when he glances at Kazuya he notices a sudden look of unease on Kazuya’s face. Jin frowns. “...What?”

“Um...small problem,” Kazuya admits quietly as the others suddenly look quite sheepish. All except Koki who was here with Jin.

Jin sighs and turns his attention to the young captain. “What did you do?”

“I may, or may not, have stolen something quite valuable,” Kazuya admits quietly and when he sees Jin’s wide eyes he huffs. “I can’t help myself! I see something shiny and expensive—I go for it!”

“Even if it does belong to Domoto Koichi…” Taguchi mutters under his breath.

“WHAT?!” Jin exclaims just before he hears his advisors whispering in his ears, calling him back. He groans and reluctantly lets go of Kazuya’s hand so he can get up.

“Koki,” he says. “Stay with this lot.”

Koki nods and Kazuya shoots Jin another apologetic face as Jin heads out and back to the castle before the advisors start to hurt him. Jin races through the castle gates and into the courtroom. When he gets there the Rose is the one standing out in front.

Because the advisors don’t actually have faces, it’s hard for most people to actually tell when they’re angry. Yet, because Jin can hear them, he knows they’re angry and the fact that the Rose is out means this was a communication thing. He bows in front of them all and says nothing.

“Domoto,” the Rose whispers.

Jin nods and lifts his head. “Whatever it is, I’ll fix it.”

“He’s demanding justice,” the Rose tells him. “The Mercury Pirates—”

“Are under our protection and the Captain is young and has a lot to learn,” Jin defends Kazuya. “I will fix it. We can send a delegation or I can visit him personally.”

“He wants the pirates,” the Rose tells him. “He wants Kamenashi—”

“Kamenashi Kazuya is under my protection and he will remain so,” Jin reminds the advisors. “But I can fix this personally. Send me to Kinki and I will fix this and ensure our contract and treaty of peace with them remains the same.”

He’s more forceful than usual but Jin doesn’t even want to entertain the idea of handing Kazuya over to Domoto Koichi for the sake of peace.

He’d eat him whole.

The other advisors turn their heads towards each other, debating the idea before the Rose steps back and returns to her usual position. Jin watches as one of the advisors turns to him and nods. “You will go and settle this matter personally,” they tell him. “You will also take the pirates with you to fix what they’ve done wrong.”

-

It’s not often that Jin actually has to leave his lands, but in the rare times he does he always has to leave someone in charge. Someone the people turn to for answers should anything go wrong. But with Jin’s allies moving and shifting with his every move, and the fact that most of his allies will actually be going with him to Kinki, he’s left with no choice but to leave the advisors themselves in charge.

“They’re silent,” Kazuya points out as Jin packs the last of his things onto the ship. “How will they get anything done?”

“Hopefully,” Jin huffs and drops his bag near his hammock. “Nothing will go wrong and I won’t be gone long.”

They’re to set sail that day and Jin would be lying if he said the thought of travelling for the first time ever with the Mercury Pirates isn’t exciting. Secretly, it’s what Jin’s been wanting—a chance to sail the high seas, to see beyond his own lands. Sure, this is a diplomatic mission but it doesn’t make it any less exciting.

A chance to spend a lot of unmonitored time with Kazuya and finally see him in action as the captain of his own ship. Jin has all sorts of impossible fantasies in his head as he watches Koki drop his stuff in the sleeping quarters  as well.

“This is cosy,” Koki comments and looks around the middle deck. There’s six hammocks, three on either side. It’s not the best situation, and Jin’s pretty sure he’s going to get someone’s ass in his face at some point since he’s at the bottom, but he doesn’t care.

Tatsuya wanders in and climbs up onto the top bunk. There’s a quiet swish of noise as the hammock above gets lighter telling Jin that the boy is back in rabbit form. Koki heads back out and Kazuya turns to Jin.

“Sorry about this,” he winces. “I didn’t think it would come back to bite you in the ass.”

“What did you steal from him?” Jin can’t help but ask and Kazuya shows him a shiny bracelet donning his left wrist. It’s made of pure solid gold and it’s so shiny that even the most stoic magpie (or Kamenashi) would have trouble ignoring it.

Jin sighs heavily. “Just know this,” he tells the boy. “He’s not going to have you. I’ll settle matters with Domoto and you’re still under my protection.”

He hears Tatsuya snort and looks back to see Kazuya is looking amused too.

“...What?”

“Jin,” Kazuya steps forward, he places his hand on Jin’s chest and leans in so close Jin’s senses are immediately invaded with his scent and heat. It makes his head spin a little as Kazuya leans his face in and smiles at Jin. It’s almost evil the way his lips twist into a wicked grin. “I think out on these seas it’s _my_ protection you’re going to need.”

The crew make a huge song and dance about _re_ -packing the ship with all the goods they’d ‘rightfully stolen,’ but when it’s finally packed up again and everyone’s ready the ship sets off at last when the moon is already high in the skies. Jin watches from the main deck, impressed as Kazuya goes around barking orders at his crew.

He’s kind of impressive and Jin has a hard time remembering that Kazuya’s actually younger than him.

“Cookie!” Kazuya says as the pirate climbs up to sit in his lookout post. “Rocks?”

“Nary a rock t’be seen!” Cookie calls back. “Clear blue s’far as the eye can see!”

“Good.” Kazuya crosses his arms. “Now, stay up there this time. I don’t want a repeat of the Zone Islands!”

“Aye!”

Jin frowns and looks at Kazuya. “What happened on the Zone Islands?”

“He fell asleep and we ran into some rocks,” Kazuya mutters quietly and glances warily up at Cookie. From the deck they can only see his lookout post and his scraggly hair blowing in the wind.

It’s all so exciting to Jin. He sees the crew running around, keeping the ship sailing out of his harbour and out onto the sea, and although Jin’s been on a ship before he’s never seen it quite like this. All these men are easily in their forties, fifties— Cookie is actually sixty-three!—yet, all of them seem to be quite happy to follow the orders of a seventeen year old boy.

Koki comes out and takes the opportunity to lean far over the edge to watch the water underneath them. Taguchi is already working on one of the sails and Jin saw Nakamaru getting sick earlier.  Jin notices Kazuya looking at him fondly and grins. “You know, I’m actually kind of glad you pissed Domoto off,” he admits. “Because if you hadn’t I wouldn’t have been able to do this.”

Kazuya laughs and leans against the helm. “Well,” he hums “I’ll just have to piss more of your allies off.”

The voyage from Jin’s lands to the Kinki Region typically takes about three days. Jin finds out fairly damn quickly that bunking in the same room as five other boys—even if one of those boys is Kazuya himself—is really fucking difficult.

He’s on the bottom hammock, which means that when he lies in his bed it dips down until his ass is literally on the floor. Then there’s Taguchi lying above him (with his hammock sinking down until it’s uncomfortably close to Jin’s nose) and Tatsuya is above them both. Jin’s never actually noticed this but the rabbit gets night terrors. When he sleeps as a human he screams in the middle of the night.

On the other side of the bunks, Koki is at the bottom and Jin finds out he snores. Kazuya is curled in the middle and Nakamaru is only on the top bunk because the others thought it was funny to exploit his fear of heights. Maybe he’s not that high but he’s terrified anyway and it takes him ages to go to sleep.

On the second night, Jin decides that sleeping is impossible and he sneaks out and onto the main deck instead. The cold, crisp air hits his face as he heads out and watches the open sea.

It’s kind of amazing how he’s been out to sea before but never bothered to look at it like this. The air is so cold it freezes him right down to his bones but he hardly cares. Aside from the two crew members still out making sure the ship runs smoothly, Jin’s practically alone. He leans his arms on the rail and feels the wind whipping his hair back until he feels a warmth come up behind him.

He knows who it is without even opening his eyes.

He feels Kazuya turn him around and manages to meet his lips without ever having to open his eyes. Kazuya’s arms loop around his shoulders and Jin slips his own around the other. He feels the chains, buckles, and endless swords attached to Kazuya and can’t help but laugh in the kiss.

Once a pirate, always a pirate.

Kazuya pulls back and Jin opens his eyes. He watches the other and smiles.

Kazuya’s looking at him like he’s something amazing and Jin doesn’t know why. He doesn’t see himself as anything particularly amazing—he’s not a badass pirate like Kazuya or a mystical creature like Tatsuya. He’s not a master thief like Taguchi or a know-it-all scaredy cat doctor like Nakamaru, but Kazuya seems to love him anyway.

“I thought kings didn’t feel things like this?” Kazuya asks but he’s leaning into Jin still.

“Turns out”—Jin tightens his grip on the other—“I’m a special case.”

Whatever the reasoning Kazuya is happy for it, and when he kisses Jin again all Jin can feel is bliss.

-

Kinki Island is split in two. It’s a little strange to most foreigners, but it’s like looking at an island perfectly split in half.  A symmetrical castle sits in the middle of the island, each side reflecting its surroundings. However, whilst the land is whole and unbroken, the skies above are split—one half is dark like the night, the other half is light like the day. An island of perpetual darkness and eternal light. One side is modern with tall skyscrapers and highways, the other medieval with forests and villages.

It’s an incredibly strange sight to see the earth just split in the middle like this, but as Jin docks with the pirates on the light side of the island he learns not to question it.

He takes Kazuya and the crew with him to the castle and, just like the world they sit in, the castle too is cast in half. One half lies in shadow, the other brilliantly illuminated. The two thrones in the middle of the throne room are placed one on either side, yet, they sit next to each other. Tsuyoshi in the dark and Koichi in the light.

Even their clothes are different: Koichi dressed in white, Tsuyoshi in black. However, Jin knows they’re just as evil as each other.

Koichi hums as Jin approaches him and bows low. He shifts his gaze to Kazuya right behind Jin and frowns. “So, the Mercury Pirates hide behind their Pirate King.”

For a moment, Jin thinks he means Kazuya but Koichi is looking at him. Jin blinks in confusion and nods. “I’m here to fix relations between our kingdoms.”

“I figured,” Koichi hums. He glances at Tsuyoshi who’s watching him silently.

Tsuyoshi creeps Jin out. He’s always staring and he’s a man of few words—which unnerves Jin because then he doesn’t know what he wants.

Koichi looks over them thoughtfully and Jin wonders how much ass he’s going to have to kiss to get this to work. He doesn’t want to lose his treaty with Kinki because that would ruin the peace. The kingdoms live and function in relative peace and that works so long as everyone co-operates.

In saying that, however, Jin’s kingdom is the least peaceful since he keeps the pirates in his protection and those pirates deliberately go out and disturb the peace. It sort of makes Jin a pirate himself in that he says one thing and doesn’t condone another.

“What was stolen from me was priceless,” Koichi says. “A present from Tsuyoshi.”

Kazuya shrinks and Jin reaches behind him to touch his arm a little. He faces Koichi bravely. “What can I do?”

“Actually”—Koichi gets up, he comes down the stairs and faces the lot of them—“You can keep it if you do something for me. Do this and the peace between our kingdoms will be kept.”

“I can keep it?” Kazuya blurts.

Koichi eyes him warily and turns his gaze to Jin. “Kanjani,” he says. “They have something I want.”

“Your contract with Kanjani is your own, I shouldn’t meddle with that,” Jin tries to back out but Koichi’s having none of it.

“You violated my contract by stealing from me, now you will do this for me. I want your pirates and you to get this thing for me.”

Jin sighs. He wishes Koichi had just told their advisors, that would have saved him the trip.

“So, now I have to sail over to Kanjani Island?” he says with a raised eyebrow. “What is it you want from them anyway?”

“You won’t have to sail at all,” Koichi says, crossing his arms. “Kanjani are on their way here as we speak. They’re renewing their contract with us and are bringing us goods to seal the deal. When they arrive, there will be a ball and you will take this opportunity to take this item from them and give it to me. Do that and I’ll preserve my contract with you.”

It sounds like it would get all of them in a lot of shit with Kanjani but Jin knows he needs to fix this.

He just hopes Nishikido isn’t awake for Kanjani this time.

Koichi takes his silence as acceptance and smiles wide. “Good,” he says. “You and your main pirates will sleep here in the castle. The ball is tomorrow. I expect you to be on your best behaviour.”

Jin keeps his grumble in and glances at Kazuya. He can promise he’ll be on his best behaviour but Kazuya can’t promise such a thing. The boy has always had sticky hands and is hopelessly drawn to everything shiny. Koichi’s half of the kingdom is the very definition of shiny.

Kazuya makes most of the crew sleep in the taverns and those that stay behind are taken to real sleeping quarters. It’s much more comfortable for the crew away from the castle and it’ll be easier to steal from Kanjani if there aren’t twenty or so pirates trying. The ones who end up staying at the castle are Jin, Kazuya, Tatsuya, Koki, Taguchi, and Nakamaru.

They’re taken to their room and it takes Jin a little moment longer to realise that Koichi is making them all sleep in one place. More than that, it’s a small room with six futons spread out on the floor side-by-side.

“Great,” Koki says when he leaves them alone. He looks at Jin and Kazuya and points at them. “If I feel squirming or hear sighs, I’m going to sleep outside.”

Kazuya’s face goes pink and Jin splutters. “What do you think we’re going to do?!”

“Mate?” Tatsuya offers with a shrug.

“Steal each other’s virginity?” Taguchi, the eternal thief himself, adds with a huge smile.

“Give each other rashes I’m not even going to try to heal?” Nakamaru finishes.

“I-I’m not gonna—” Jin splutters and jumps when Kazuya slaps his ass.

“Hmm,” Kazuya hums. “Well, I do have trouble keeping my hands to myself.”

The look on his face is pure evil and Jin finds it hard to breathe.  He’s staring at Kazuya as the other four quietly leave the room again. They’re kind of getting used to the fact that Jin and Kazuya should really be left alone, and it does them some credit that they seem to know this relationship is supposed to be a secret—even if Jin’s making no real effort to hide it.

They come back later to sleep. Jin ends up on a futon between Kazuya and Taguchi. Kazuya had taken the end so he actually has more space. In the darkness, Jin lies in bed and tries not to think about how Kazuya is just right next to him.

It’s bad enough that he can feel Taguchi breathing on him. Jin squirms onto his side and looks at Kazuya’s form in the darkness. The other is tinier than him but Jin knows better. One of the reasons why he’s so drawn to Kazuya is simply because of who he is. He’s not helpless or weak, and this time he even got Jin in trouble but Jin just can’t find it in himself to condemn him for it.

He sees Kazuya’s eyes open. The younger smiles slowly and squirms closer until he’s on the edge of his futon. Jin does the same, his eyes instinctively drifting shut when he feels Kazuya’s hand on his cheek. Kazuya brushes Jin’s hair back from his face and Jin just lets him.

“This feels right,” Kazuya says after a couple of seconds. His voice is quiet, hushed and Jin’s ears instinctively listen out for any changes in the breathing of the others. They all seem asleep so far.

“What does?” he asks.

“This.” Kazuya takes Jin’s hand. “You and Koki being here with us. Seeing the world with us. It feels right.”

Jin can’t argue with that. It does feel right and it’s not just because he gets to spend a lot of unmonitored time with Kazuya. It’s also the rest of the crew, his little group of six—including himself. It feels like they’re supposed to be put together. Six boys who didn’t actually fit anywhere fit perfectly with each other.

“He called you the King of Pirates,” Kazuya points out after a moment. Jin opens his eyes to see a huge, hopeful smile on Kazuya’s face. “The King of Pirates,” he says again, his voice hopeful and happy. “I like it.”

“You’re the Captain,” Jin feels compelled to remind the boy. “You’re the one in charge.”

“Then I can be your queen,” Kazuya teases him.

Jin leans in to take his lips and the younger sighs against him. They both hear Koki groan in annoyance and the kiss is broken as they crack up laughing instead.

-

Kanjani is a strange kingdom. Their king is Subaru Shibutani and the guy is so unpredictable, so packed with repressed rage and loathing, that dealing with him is one of the hardest things to do. Where Koyama’s kingdom works in a structured system of seconds and a hierarchy, Kanjani has none at all.

He’s flanked by seven other guys, none of whom have an official title except for Nishikido and Uchi (both of whom are switches and have residing places in Koyama’s kingdom as well). Their unofficial title is _Rangers_ , commonly believed to have been taken from a skit they played to stem off boredom one drunken night—though no one knows for sure.  When they enter the ballroom the next night, Jin watches with Kazuya as Subaru walks in like he owns everything he sees. His men are no better, even Nishikido has that attitude when he’s working for him.

“Well, well, well,” Subaru says as he approaches Jin and Kazuya. “The King of Pirates.”

Jin hears Kazuya make a quiet gleeful noise and wonders how common that nickname is amongst the other kingdoms. He’s surprised he hasn’t heard of it before.

Jin pulls on his tie and bows politely. It’s a ball, an official formal dance, and to commemorate the evening Koichi has decorated the ballroom beautifully. Blue and purple ribbons line the dome ceiling, glitter—of course—litters the floors and the tables are stocked full with enough food and alcohol to please everyone. At the head of the room he sits on his throne with Tsuyoshi, both of them watching the exchange with unreadable faces.

“What are you doing here?” Subaru asks. His scratchy and nasal tone is actually his signature sound.

“I had some business with the Kings,” Jin explains and it’s not totally a lie. He is only here because he wanted to fix things with Domoto.

Subaru hums and Jin glances at Nishikido behind him. But Nishikido isn’t looking at him, he’s not even looking at his own King. He’s staring at the dance floor. Jin follows his gaze to Tatsuya, dressed in white and dancing with a girl.

It’s actually kind of ironic that the girl is wearing bunny ears and Tatsuya is still prettier than her.

“I heard your pirates are a rowdy bunch.” Subaru glances at Kazuya beside Jin and smirks. “Do you keep them on a leash?”

Jin grabs Kazuya’s arm before he does something stupid—like punch the King of Kanjani—and faces Subaru calmly.

“We’re not on my land, or yours, tonight,” he points out with a grin. “So many pirates around. I really hope you keep a close, close eye on your most valuable things.”

Subaru’s eyes widen with alarm. He looks up when Koichi finally speaks up.

“Subaru,” he calls and beckons the man to him.

Subaru throws a glare at Kazuya before shoving past them to go to the Domoto Kings. Jin smiles to himself and turns to Kazuya.

“Know the plan?” he asks in a quiet voice.

Kazuya snorts. “I invented the plan.”

Jin grins at him and heads off to the dance floor to find himself a partner. As much as he wants to dance with Kazuya, and he does, they’re supposed to act normal. Normal for both Koichi, and Subaru for that matter, is that kings are robots and don’t do things like kiss the pirate captain. Male or female, they just don’t do that.

Jin notices Nishikido watching his rabbit pirate again and wonders if Nishikido will break that rule before he does.

The Domoto Kingdom is a flashy one. Everything is sparkles, glitter, swishing skirts, and dramatic entrances; so it’s no surprise the ball is pretty much the same. When Jin’s crew and Subaru’s get settled and start to enjoy the night, Jin glances at Kazuya on the dance floor. They’re all dancing with other people. The girl Jin picked is actually taller than him and her hands are cold. She keeps talking about finding a suitable marriage. It’s a blatant hint but Jin keeps looking at Kazuya dancing with his partner.

He hasn’t noticed this before—and in all honesty, he hasn’t ever had the chance to see the younger dance until now—but he didn’t know Kamenashi Kazuya actually knew how to move. He’s kind of distracting and it’s sort of obvious that he can feel a rhythm and beat a lot better than most others.

Jin wonders if there’s anything this boy can’t do.

The plan is fairly simple. They just have to act normal and act like their only concern is having fun. When Subaru and his rangers are distracted and not looking at them, Jin and Kazuya just have to slip out, steal the thing that Koichi wants them to steal, and come back before anyone notices they’re gone.

It’s the job of the others, namely Koki, Tatsuya, Nakamaru, and Taguchi, to make sure that nobody notices they’re gone.

They’re about forty minutes in and Jin’s feet start to hurt when he finally notices Kazuya slip away. He wouldn’t even have noticed had he not been constantly watching the boy. He’s fast—one second he’s dancing with his partner and the next he’s gone.

Jin looks around. The Kanjani Rangers are distracted. Subaru is talking to Tsuyoshi and the others are occupied with either food, dancing, or staring at a dancing rabbit. Jin breaths an ‘excuse me’ to his partner before breaking free and following to the curtain where he’d seen Kazuya disappear.

He’s close to the curtain when a hand comes out and yanks him inside and out of sight of the others. Jin collides with Kazuya’s warm body and breathes a sigh of relief. “Thank god,” he says. “I thought you were—”

He’s cut off when Kazuya’s lips mash into his and Jin feels the younger push him into a wall. He moans breathily into the kiss, nowhere near ready for it to end when Kazuya pulls back and grabs Jin’s shirt in his hands.

“Watching you dance with someone else made me jealous,” Kazuya whispers to him.

Jin feels a zing of happiness flush through him and a heat crawl up his cheeks and onto his face. He coughs lightly. “I’ll be sure to dance only with you from now on then,” he promises quietly.

Kazuya squeezes his hands and Jin can feel his breath on his face. He can hardly see anything except for the frame of Kazuya’s body but the boy is unbearably close.

“Good,” Kazuya whispers and pulls on his hand. “Let’s go.”

They sneak out of the main ballroom and into the corridors. Jin leads the way, his hand tightly holding Kazuya’s as they run down the hallways. Koichi probably told his guards to let them through because none stop or question them as they rush past.

“Kanjani’s quarters are up there,” Jin says as he leads Kazuya up a flight of stairs. The pirate behind him laughs as they head up and notice the only doors that the guards are nowhere near: Subaru’s room. Koichi would have ordered them to leave it alone so no one could witness Kazuya and Jin doing this.

Jin pushes the door open and looks around. Kanjani have better sleeping quarters than his group. Where he and the pirates are stuck in one room, futon against futon, and six growing boys cramped in one space, Kanjani is different. Subaru has his own damn room.

“Let’s be quick,” Jin says as he looks around. “Koichi says we’re looking for a big trunk.”

“How hard can that be?” Kazuya chirps in and slowly lets go of Jin’s hand so he can search the other side of the room.

Jin watches him go and looks around the bed. Unlike his group, Subaru actually has a bed. One with posters and everything. Jin looks under it and around, but all he finds are folded up blankets and extra pillows. He wonders why Koichi is pampering Subaru so when he makes no effort to do the same to Jin.

Admittedly, the reason why Jin came here was because he’d been making amends for Kazuya. Still, he’s a king. Koichi needs his cooperation just the same.

“So…” Kazuya says, his eyes looking over Subaru’s things. “About possibly relieving him of these things…”

“Try not to steal from my allies. You know he’s going to blame the pirates first,” Jin says, shooting a look at the younger boy. “Besides, I can only protect you on my land. I can’t protect you here.”

“Fine,” Kazuya sighs and pushes some things over. His eyes land on a rather large chest and he whistles. “Found it.”

The chest is a big, heavy, box-like thing that would be impossible to carry out alone. It has elaborate designs on the outside, swirls of gold and silver lining the surfaces, and a huge lock keeping it closed. Jin watches as Kazuya takes something out of his hair and crouches down to pick the lock. He raises his eyebrows.

“You know how to pick locks?” Jin asks as he watches Kazuya’s fingers dexterously coaxing the levers into springing free.

“A pirate, even a bad one, has to know this much,” Kazuya mutters.

Jin hums and watches as the lock clicks open and Kazuya removes it. They both reach to open the chest, pushing the heavy lid aside. However, when they look in the sight shocks them.

What they expect to see is gold of some sort or maybe an artifact. Koichi never did tell them what he wanted them to steal, only that it was in the chest. Instead, they see a small boy sitting in a fetal position, his dirty black hair matted with grime and his eyes large with fear.

“What the…” Kazuya breathes in astonishment.

Jin stares. The boy is covered in grime and muck, his thin clothes stick to his dirty skin with sweat and he’s shivering. Jin reaches in and takes his arm, helping him up and out of the chest. The boy is shaking so hard he can barely stand, so Jin loops an arm under his knees and picks him up.

Kazuya stares as he pulls his jacket off and puts it over the boy.

“What’s your name?” he asks quietly.

The boy just shivers and Jin looks around. He wants to ask Subaru why the fuck he has a boy in a chest but this is way over his head. Whatever is going on, Koichi knew about it and Koichi expects him. Jin nods to the door and Kazuya follows as the two head out, carrying the boy into the corridor and out towards their own quarters instead.

Kazuya closes the door behind himself as Jin sets the boy on their floor and looks over him properly.

“Hey,” Jin says softly. “My name is Jin, what’s yours?”

The boy shivers and stares at Jin but something in him seems to relax just a little. “Kota,” he breathes, his teeth chattering. “Yabu Kota.”

“Where are you from, Kota?” Kazuya asks, concern lacing his tone.

Kota shakes his head and Jin looks around. The boy needs a bath and proper clothes. They don’t have access to much and Jin is very reluctant to give this boy to Koichi without knowing about his intentions with him. He wants to know why Subaru has him in the first place.

They run a bath. Kazuya finds the warm water the servants had left for them and pours it into the bath basin. Jin carries the boy in and helps him bathe as Kazuya ducks out to steal some food from the ballroom. As Jin washes the muck and grime out of Kota’s hair, he watches him carefully and frowns. “So, where do you come from?”

“Nowhere,” Kota mumbles and looks down. “My island is gone.”

Jin runs his fingers gently through Kota’s hair and frowns. “What do you mean?”

“It sank,” Kota whispers and Jin didn’t even know islands could do that.

When Kota is clean again, he dries him off and dresses him in his own spare clothes. He’s just putting Kota in one of his shirts when Kazuya comes in with a plate of sweet rolls and water. He sets it in front of Kota who gratefully starts eating.

Jin turns to Kazuya. “His island sank,” he tells him and frowns. “I didn’t know they could do that.”

“Happens sometimes.” Kazuya sits beside Kota and thinks about it. “I’ve seen spaces of ocean where there once was land. It’s rare, but it does happen.”

Jin wonders why his advisors didn’t tell him that.

Kazuya looks at Kota and frowns. “So, why did Subaru have you in a chest?”

“He found me floating on a log,” Kota explains quietly between mouthfuls of sweet rolls. “Me and Hikaru...we were separated when the island sank. I was going to die.”

“He was keeping you in a chest,” Jin reminds him. “Was he at least feeding you?”

“Sometimes,” Kota mumbles.

Kazuya frowns. He gets that look on his face that tells Jin he’s thinking and Jin glances at the boy. Kota’s island had sunk and he’d been found alone by Kanjani. Subaru is kind of infamous for his trust issues so it’s highly likely that he’d kept the boy in a chest because he didn’t know what to do with him and he didn’t trust him out on his own.

Kazuya gets up, takes Jin’s arm, and walks him away from Kota to talk in private near the door. Kazuya looks troubled but determined.

Finally, Kazuya sighs. “We have to give him to Koichi.”

“What?!” Jin splutters. “Why?!”

“We can’t take him,” Kazuya tells him. “And Koichi set us on this mission. Even if we keep him and take him back with us, we’ll have Kinki on our asses—that’s a headache we don’t need.”

“We don’t know what Koichi wants with him,” Jin argues. “What if he—”

“Jin,” Kazuya cuts him off, his tone firm and stern. “We don’t have a choice. Either he gets Kota or we run with the boy. Then he comes after us, annihilates us, and still gets Kota.”

It stops Jin in his tracks and Jin glances at Kota worriedly. The boy is so little, starved, and probably scared out of his mind. Jin wants to protect him.

“Jin, I think I know who he is,” Kazuya explains in a quiet voice. “I’ve heard of his island. It was a little kingdom, ruled by two rulers just like this island. Yabu Kota and Yaotome Hikaru. They had two others but I only heard of them. That island was never going to make it. It was sinking all the time. They must have stayed until it couldn’t hold them anymore.”

Jin doesn’t understand how an island can just sink like that. His has always been so stable. He feels Kazuya take his hand and looks at him helplessly.

“Jin, we don’t have a choice,” Kazuya tells him. “Koichi sent us to get him and if we don’t bring him back Koichi will come after us.”

Jin knows the logic but he still hates the idea of giving Kota—like he’s an object and not a human being—to another ruler. Still, he knows Kazuya is right and when Kota finishes eating he reluctantly returns to the boy and crouches down with a small smile.

“Can you walk?” he asks.

Kota nods and Jin helps him up with Kazuya. They lead him out of their room and back towards the ballroom. But instead of going in and alerting Subaru that they have what he seems to have stolen, they round up around the ballroom to the backrooms instead.

The guards seem to have been expecting them because they let them in right away. Jin and Kazuya lead Kota into a small room where Koichi is waiting with Tsuyoshi. Jin and Kazuya bow before letting Kota out in front of them.

“Good.” Koichi leans over and takes Kota out of their hands. He guides the boy to stand next to him. “Good. This will fix things between us.”

Jin lifts his head. “What are you going to do with him?” he can’t help but ask.

“That is our business,” Tsuyoshi tells him in a firm tone. It’s that tone that tells Jin not to press it or look into it.

Jin wants to. He wants to demand answers, but Kazuya takes his arm and starts pulling him back towards the door. Jin looks helplessly at Kota who is watching him with wide eyes.

“You and your pirates can go home tomorrow morning,” Koichi tells him. “Our contract is still protected.”

“Come on,” Kazuya whispers in Jin’s ear and Jin doesn’t want to leave. He wants to take Kota with him. He doesn’t trust Koichi or Tsuyoshi, but Kazuya’s right. He can’t do anything. He can’t take the boy with him without causing a war and against the Kinki forces he doesn’t stand a chance.

Kazuya takes him out of the room and Jin watches Kota until the doors shut them out. He then follows Kazuya back to the ballroom, his hand holding Kazuya’s once more.

“We couldn’t have saved him,” Kazuya tells him quietly.

Jin looks down and squeezes Kazuya’s hand tightly. “Yeah…” he mumbles, guilt crawling up and down his spine, twirling in his gut like an ill reminder.

Night falls and that feeling of unease doesn’t let up even as the ball finally draws to a close and everyone is allowed to sleep at last. Jin curls up in his futon and glances at Kazuya next to him. Kazuya has been watching him ever since that horrible ordeal. Under the covers, his hand holds Jin’s tightly and it's comforting against the guilt that seems intent on consuming Jin.

What will happen to Kota? He was in a bad state with Subaru but would Koichi be any better?

He falls asleep with these tumultuous thoughts and wakes up hours later when he hears familiar squeaking.

Jin opens his eyes. He looks at Tatsuya’s bed first and sees a rabbit where the boy once was. Kazuya’s already awake, he’s sitting up in bed and watching the rabbit steadily, watching him to see if he’ll bolt. He still does that. Night terrors and nightmares still terrorise the rabbit into running blindly.

Jin watches as the rabbit twitches in its sleep and it's some sort of miracle that his little whimpers and twitches aren’t waking the others.

Suddenly Tatsuya squeaks and bolts for the door causing Kazuya to swear under his breath. He and Jin run after the rabbit as it leaps through the door and out into the hallways.

“Tatsuya!” Kazuya calls for him, running barefoot with Jin through the halls and skidding across corners as they chase after the rabbit. It’s some sort of curse that Tatsuya, as a rabbit, is unfathomably fast.

The rabbit runs back into the ballroom. Kazuya and Jin rush after him and stop as they watch the rabbit run towards the only person left in the hall. For some reason, Nishikido Ryo is still hanging about. He had been looking out the wide windows when Tatsuya jumps up and settles in his arms.

“Shit, what the—” Ryo exclaims. The rabbit settles in his arms and tucks his nose in his neck.

“Tatsuya,” Kazuya pants as he and Jin finally reach them.

“Ryo,” Jin says. “That rabbit…”

Ryo looks at the rabbit in confusion and Kazuya sighs.

“That’s Tatsuya,” he explains. “He’s in our crew. He’s from the Moon Islands.”

“Really?” Ryo blinks and looks over the rabbit. Kazuya steps forward to take him when Tatsuya digs his claws into Ryo. The Kanjani Ranger yelps in pain and steps back. “Okay, okay, stop it.”

Tatsuya twitches and Kazuya sighs heavily. This is like Taguchi all over again.

“He gets like this,” Kazuya explains. “Night terrors and he runs towards the safest thing he can find.”

Right now, that safe thing seems to be Nishikido Ryo.

“Um...well, since he seems determined to dig his claws in me, I can keep an eye on him for now until he...comes to,” Ryo offers and shrugs. “I mean, I wasn’t going to go to bed for some time anyway.”

Kazuya watches as Tatsuya’s long, floppy ears droop down a little. It’s a signal to let him do this. The pirate captain sighs and exchanges a wary look with Jin before nodding. “Alright, fine. He knows the way back to our quarters. Just...make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

“Got it,” Ryo shrugs and Jin feels better leaving Tatsuya with Ryo than with any other member of Kanjani. It’s not that they’re bad guys, in fact most of them are good, but he trusts Ryo the most. Mainly because he’s dealt with this guy as an agent of Koyama and Subaru. He’s trustworthy and he, like Yamapi, shares Jin’s sense of humour. He gets along with him.

“Look after him,” he says and Ryo shrugs easily.

Kazuya takes Jin’s arm and the two of them leave the ballroom. They don’t get far before Kazuya pulls on Jin’s arm, silently commanding him to stop. Jin looks at the other in confusion and watches as Kazuya presses a finger to his lips and heads back to the doors of the ballroom to peek in.

Jin looks in and watches as Tatsuya changes form in Ryo’s arms. He turns into his human form and Ryo watches as the rabbit with copper hair smiles at him. Tatsuya drapes his arms around Ryo’s shoulders and leans in. “You’ve been staring at me all night,” he tells him. “Think I didn’t notice?”

Jin spots Ryo’s arm around Tatsuya’s waist. Ryo hums in thought. “Is this beastiality?”

“Probably best if you don’t think about it that way,” Tatsuya advises him. He kisses him and to Jin’s surprise—or maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised—Ryo kisses him back.

He looks at Kazuya and sees the other looking just as confused. Their kisses get harder and Jin takes Kazuya’s shoulders to lead him out of there. Spying on the two kissing seems slightly creepy.

“To be honest,” Kazuya admits as they walk back to their quarters. “I thought it would have been Taguchi.”

Jin thought so too but Tatsuya, apparently, had different ideas.

They settle back in their beds and Kazuya snuggles into Jin’s side. He must be in the crack between their futons but he doesn’t seem to care as he wraps his arm around Jin’s middle and rests his head on Jin’s shoulder. It’s warm and comfortable despite the tingling in Jin’s gut.

“That rabbit is a puzzle,” Kazuya whispers in his ear and Jin shivers.

“He’s not the only one,” he mutters and reaches to hold Kazuya’s hand.

He feels Kazuya lips press gently against his neck and closes his eyes.

“Sleep,” Kazuya breathes.

Jin’s not sure how he’s going to survive more nights like this. He doesn’t even know what he wants except that Kazuya is driving him crazy and an unfamiliar thirst is settling in him.

It’s Koki’s snore that stops him from acting on it and instead he forces himself to sleep.

-

Tatsuya comes back to them in the early hours of the morning. Jin’s just barely awake when he notices him sneaking in, crawling onto his bed, and flopping down with a tired sigh.

They all wake up an hour or so later. Kazuya eyes Tatsuya’s tired, but quietly happy, state as they pack up their things.

Jin turns to Kazuya. “Round up your crew and meet me at the docks. I have to settle matters with Koichi before I leave.”

Kazuya frowns in concern. “Will you be alright?”

“I’ll be fine,” Jin promises and rubs his arm. “I’ll meet you on the ship.”

He heads alone to the main hall and sees the Kings on their throne. Kota stands silently between them and Subaru is already there, sulking and furious, but he makes no moves towards the boy. Jin bows before them and fixes his eyes on Koichi.

“Thank you for your hospitality,” he says in a polite tone. He needs to keep up relations with these kings after all.

Subaru glares at him and Jin shifts uneasily as Koichi and Tsuyoshi nod in acknowledgement. Jin looks at Kota between them. The boy still looks a little terrified but he’s calmer now. At least he’s clean and looks fed.

“You stole him,” Subaru snarls at him.

“On my orders,” Koichi says calmly. “Akanishi owed me a debt.”

“He was mine!” Subaru snaps, turning his furious eyes to Koichi.

“You were keeping him locked up in a trunk!” Jin can’t help but yell at him. “He was cold, covered in shit, and starving! What the fuck, Subaru?!”

Subaru looks furious and Koichi speaks up. “Enough,” he demands.

Both of them fall silent.

“Akanishi retrieved him on my orders. Subaru, what plans did you have for him anyway?”

Subaru looks at Kota and the boy shrinks a little. He huffs and turns his head. “Nothing.”

Jin looks at the boy. He seems safer in Koichi’s hands and that’s all Jin can really hope for. It’s not like he can take him with him, no matter how much he wants to. He bows again and slowly turns on his heel, but before he can leave he hears Koichi’s voice again.

“Wait.”

Jin stops. He turns around and Koichi stands from his throne. He walks past Subaru and stops just in front of Jin.

“King of Pirates,” Koichi tells him. “Next time, keep your pirates in line.”

Jin sighs. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but nobody controls pirates. Not even their King. But I will try to make sure they don’t steal from my allies again.”

Koichi smirks, he shrugs and steps back. “You do that, then. King of Pirates.”

Subaru huffs and Jin bows again before heading out of the hall. He makes his way peacefully out of the castle and back out towards the docks. On the way, his mind wanders.

_King of Pirates_. It’s supposed to be an insult, the way the others say it; but it feels more like a badge, one he wouldn’t mind wearing all the time. He makes it back to the docks and climbs onto the ship.

Kazuya meets him at the main deck and smiles as he approaches him. Jin can’t help the way his heart flips a bit. The other with his bandana tied around his head, his brown hair fluttering in the wind, and all stolen clothes and jewellery on him—he’s the most beautiful thing Jin’s ever seen.

“Everything alright?” Kazuya asks and Jin nods.

“All good,” he promises.

The ship leaves the docks and as it does, Jin notices Ryo standing on the docks with the rest of Kanjani. They’re going to their own ship when Ryo stops and smiles at something on Jin’s ship.

Jin sees Tatsuya smile back as the rabbit waves and heads inside. Ryo grins to himself and heads back to the rangers.

“Careful up there, Cookie!” Kazuya barks, heading to the front of the ship. He looks up at their lookout and makes his way to the helm. “All hands on deck!”

The crew sound their agreement and rush to their posts.

Jin watches Kazuya in full on captain mode and can’t help the foolish, helpless grin that rushes to his face and makes his cheeks bloom with pink.

Oh, he may be the King. He may be in charge of land and an empire of his own, but the more he sees Kazuya, the more he realises that this is something he has no control over. It’s such a strange feeling but he’s not sure he wants to be in control of this.

-

Jin wakes up one night on their way home. The ship is rockier than usual and it nearly throws him out of his hammock. He looks around and that’s when he notices empty hammocks surrounding him. The others are already up.

Jin leaves the sleeping quarters and heads up to the main deck, a blast of freezing wind cutting through him. He wraps his robe closely to himself and notices the crew are all at their stations. He spots Kazuya at the helm and heads over to him.

It’s not normal that everyone is up at night. Usually the night shift is taken over by Cookie and a small handful of pirates, not everyone.

“Kazu,” Jin says. “What’s going on?”

Kazuya looks intense, his eyebrows fixed in concentration as he looks out towards the murky, dark ocean in front of them. Jin follows his gaze and it’s so dark he can barely see anything.

“These are dangerous parts,” Kazuya says in a quiet voice. “It’s been the end of many a man before. The Akiba Province.”

“Akiba?” Jin frowns.

He’s heard of these parts. They’re kind of infamous. Something his wet nurse used to tell him like a warning for bad children who misbehaved. The Akiba Provinces belonged to what were collectively known as sirens. Some people called them schoolgirls, others called them just plain annoying, but there were untold numbers of them and they’d been the end of sailors and pirates alike. The girls who came up from the dark, murky depths sang and enticed their victims into the water with them.

“What the hell are we doing here?” Jin splutters.“Who was at the helm?”

“Cookie,” Kazuya grumbles and looks up at the man sitting in his post. “Don’t ask. The point is we’re here now and we have to get out of here before those fucking sirens come after us.”

Jin looks around. What little he knows about the Akiba sirens leaves him ill-prepared for them. But what he does know is that men very rarely resist their charm, their singing—their lure.

“What if we get everyone inside?” he suggests.

Kazuya huffs. “Someone has to stay out and make sure this ship floats,” he points out. “Besides, that won’t work.”

“It will if we lock them in?” Jin shrugs. “Look, Kazu, I know we’re a little short on options here but at least if we lock half the crew inside we won’t lose them when they hear the sirens.”

Kazuya clicks his tongue in annoyance and looks over his crew. He frowns and shakes his head. “Inside deck!” he calls. “Tatsuya, Taguchi, Koki, Nakamaru—get your asses inside! Cookie, stay up there and keep watch. Outside deck, mind your posts and keep your ears blocked!”

“Aye!” the collective men shout. Jin watches the inside deck rush for the doors. Taguchi takes Tatsuya and although the rabbit shoots Kazuya a concerned look he follows. Nakamaru looks kind of ready to shit himself and Koki looks like he wants to stay outside and listen. Jin can’t really blame him, he’s heard about the sirens too.

They head inside and Kazuya goes after them. He locks the door they leave through and returns quickly to the wheel.

“Block your ears Jin,” Kazuya says, handing him a pair of earplugs from his pocket. “It’s going to be a rough ride.”

Jin stuffs the plugs into his ears, watching as Kazuya does the same, and they both look out over the dark waters. For about twenty or so minutes, it’s pretty uneventful. The ship sails slowly, carefully through the waters and they can’t see much.

Then Jin hears it. At first, he’s fairly certain it was his imagination but then he hears it again. A slow, sweet tune; one of the sweetest he’s ever heard. It’s like the rest of the ship fades away and all he can see is this little ball of blue light out there on the horizon, somewhere in the dark waters far away.

Jin leaves Kazuya’s side. He walks closer to the edge of the ship and leans on the wood, watching as the ball of light comes closer and closer to him. The song gets louder and sweeter, tickling Jin’s ears pleasantly until the light reveals itself to be a girl.

The legends were right. The girl is dressed in a red pirate outfit, complete with a hat atop her long, black hair. Her face is the picture of beauty and innocence. She wears a brown leather vest that covers most of the red dress underneath that’s laced with chains; and a red skirt that stops just at her thighs, leaving a view of her legs until they reach boots.

She leans against the side of the ship and reaches her hand out to stroke Jin’s cheek, her fingers expertly plucking the earplugs out. They were useless anyway.

“Hello, beautiful,” she whispers to him, her eyes lighting a dangerous blue as she leans in. “Come with me.”

Jin feels a reluctant tug at the back of his mind, like he knows this isn’t what he wants to do but his body moves differently. Her eyes flash and he feels his body tug towards her. His hands grip the rail of the ship and his legs want to jump.

“Come play,” the girl says to him, her fingers trailing delicately down his chest. “Come be with me.”

Jin leans in, his eyes flutter and he nearly jumps before a hand grabs his shoulder and wrenches him back so hard his back slams into the deck. Jin blinks and watches as Kazuya pulls a pistol from his belt and points it at the girl, his eyes blazing with fury.

It’s then that Jin notices the other girls on the ship, other sirens dressed in a similar outfits but with different colours. All the girls are taking away different members of the crew. There’s even one up on the lookout post with Cookie.

“Get out,” Kazuya hisses at the girl who nearly had Jin.

She hisses at him and jumps back into the ocean as Jin leans up to grab the dagger from Kazuya’s belt and go after the other crew members. Kazuya starts opening fire on the other girls as Jin puts the dagger between his teeth and starts climbing the lookout post to get to Cookie.

The sirens are screaming. The men are a cross between still wanting to follow them into the waters and finally coming to their senses. Jin swings himself up the pole and he can still hear the siren calling for Cookie. She’s up there with him and she’s singing.

Jin grabs the lookout post, takes the dagger from his mouth with his free hand, and swings himself up to see the old man grinning from ear to ear. The schoolgirl is sitting on his lap, singing to him and stroking his beard. She looks up and when she sees Jin she hisses at him and clutches Cookie in her suddenly sharp claws.

“This one is mine,” she hisses to him. Cookie doesn’t seem to object.

“Sorry love,” Jin sighs. “I need my lookout man.”

He swipes at the siren with his dagger and the girl screams. He tries it again and she lets go of Cookie, hissing at Jin one more time before jumping off the lookout post and down to the ocean.

Cookie whines. “I was enjoying that, boy!”

Jin pats Cookie’s shoulder and starts climbing back down again. When he reaches the floor safely Kazuya grabs him by his shirt and pulls him in.

“Idiot,” he seethes, his eyes blazing with anger. “She nearly got you.”

Jin blinks. He hasn’t seen Kazuya’s anger aimed at him in some time and it’s quite the change to have it directed at him again. He reaches up to take Kazuya’s wrists, almost as if to pry him off.

“She was—”

“I know what she was!” Kazuya snaps. “You got called by Maeda Atsuko!”

“I can’t resist a siren!” Jin yelps in alarm. “Nobody can!”

Why is Kazuya so pissed off about something Jin can’t naturally control?

The pirate captain lets him go and walks away to fume for a moment. When he turns to look at Jin, his eyes are a little less furious.

“I can,” he mutters and puts away his gun. He turns to the crew. “Back on your posts!” he orders in a loud voice. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

The men rush back to their posts and Jin stares at Kazuya. How could Kazuya have resisted the sweetest call he’s ever heard? Jin found it nearly impossible, it was like someone else had been controlling his body. He walks up to the little pirate and cautiously takes his hand.

“I don’t know why I can, but I did,” Kazuya mutters, as if reading Jin’s mind. He looks at him. “When I looked up and saw you about to jump off the ship...Jin, I’ve never been that scared in my life. I have faced horrors the kings will never see in their lives and those still weren’t as terrifying as watching you nearly jump to your death. If she hadn’t been the leader of the sirens, I’d have shot her in the head.”

Kazuya is holding Jin’s hand tightly, so tight it nearly hurts. He leans in and rests his forehead against Jin’s, their breath colliding. Jin’s heart is beating so hard and fast. He can barely breathe from the overwhelming emotion he feels.

The pirate captain reaches for Jin’s hair, he cups the side of his head and closes his eyes. “Jin,” he breathes. “Don’t scare me like that ever again.”

Jin’s breath hitches. “I’ll try not to,” he promises.

“Good,” Kazuya whispers and leans forwards to take Jin’s lips.

Jin is so hopelessly powerless against him. He kisses back and realises that if that siren had resembled and sounded like Kazuya, he’d have jumped immediately. Kazuya deepens the kiss, he kisses him hard and fast, causing all the air to leave Jin’s lungs at once. His hands clutch Jin so close his fingers will leave bruises and Jin grips him just as hard.

Kings aren’t supposed to feel like this but Jin does. He’s falling hard and fast and he doesn’t want to stop.

-

When they reach Jin’s land again, Jin is returned to the advisors to settle matters once and for all with Kinki Island. Peace is restored and the Mercury Pirates stay for one week to rest and stock up on supplies.

Jin and Koki are once again holed up in the castle and it’s almost agonising after the adventure they’d been through. Koki sits on the stairs of the throne room as Jin tries not to fidget on his throne. As painful as it is knowing the pirates are just down in the tavern and he wants to go play, his role in life is different and the advisors keep reminding him of it.

He is a King. Kings don’t go off playing with pirates. They stay in the castle and do their job.

Jin spots Koki on the stairs and can’t help the smile that appears on his face. Longer than the pirates were around, Koki has always been by his side. His loyal jester, his joker. He glances at the advisors behind himself and whistles Koki over to him.

Obediently, Koki gets up and turns around to face Jin. He bows and glances warily at the advisors as well.

“Koki, there’s no sense in both of us being here,” Jin tells him calmly. “A court jester is around to entertain the king. I’m just not sure I need entertaining anymore. That shit was for when I was a kid.”

Koki huffs and folds his arms. “I’m not leaving your side,” he tells him stubbornly. “Maybe there’s no sense in both of us being here but you being here alone is even worse.”

Jin thinks about it and Koki has a point. Kazuya at least has the others with him. Hell, he has a whole damn crew, a rabbit from the Moon Islands, the Prince of Thieves, and a doctor. Jin likes that Koki is here with him all the time. He knows the joker would probably rather be with the pirates—he likes it there as much as Jin does—but he doesn’t leave.

Koki sits down next to the throne and leans slightly against Jin’s leg. “Remember that time you got bored and we decided to play dress up?”

“You decided to play dress up,” Jin points out with a grumble. “I thought you were going to dress up with me.”

“I lied,” Koki shrugs easily. “You looked good as a nurse.”

“Fuck up.”

Koki’s laughter vibrates against Jin’s leg and he rests the back of his head against Jin’s throne. “No, Jin,” he sighs. “I’m not going anywhere. So long as you’re here, I’m here.”

Jin glances at him warily. “You wouldn’t rather go and play with the pirates?”

“Of course I would, it’s fucking boring here.” Koki looks up at him and smirks. “But I’m not leaving you alone here.”

Jin hums as he leans back in his throne and raises an eyebrow at Koki.

“Then as your king, and since you’re my joker, I command you to dress up,” he says.

Koki scrunches his nose. “Anything but that.”

“You’re my joker, you do as I say and this is payback for making me dress up last time.” Jin beams. “Entertain me.”

“Tyrant,” Koki mutters but there’s a grin on his face as he gets up and wanders off to do as Jin told him to do.

While he’s gone, Jin looks behind him at the advisors. That last stint to Kinki Island had been a small blessing. He’d gotten a taste of the open ocean, of the adventure that only pirates could know, and he’d taken to it like a duck to water. He wanted more. He wasn’t sure he could sit here on this throne and rule like before.

The King of Pirates. It was an insult the other kingdoms hurled at him but he wanted to wear it like a badge of honour.

“They call me the King of Pirates,” he says to his advisors and keeps his eyes ahead. “The other kingdoms. It’s a name I’ve earned from my associations with the Mercury Pirates.”

The advisors turn their heads towards each other and one finally whispers to Jin.

“Does this bother you?”

“No, actually,” Jin replies calmly. “It’s a compliment to me—even though they mean it as an insult. King of Pirates...suits me.”

The advisors shift a little and Jin gets up. He turns to them and bows. “I’ve learned things when I was gone. The world and how it works, how it is shifting. An island that sunk not too long ago. Relations between kingdoms are changing all the time.”

“Your point?” one of the advisors asks.

“I want to serve my kingdom,” Jin tells them. “Be the king my people deserve. But as this world is changing, I don’t think that means the same that it meant to my predecessor. I don’t think a kingdom will strive if their king remains here, oblivious to the outside world. If I am your mouthpiece for the kingdom, allow me to be your eyes as well.”

Jin isn’t stupid. He knows that if the advisors are going to agree to let him go, then he has to give them a reason. They are his advisors and he is their mouthpiece to the world. As the only being that can hear them, it is Jin’s job as king to do exactly as they say and deliver their message through his voice to his own kingdom. He’s not in control, they are.

But he also knows their main interest is in survival. They’re concerned about the crops, the rice fields. They’re concerned about trade and negotiations with the other islands to keep the peace. If the world is changing, and Jin knows it is, then perhaps they can’t do this by keeping Jin on dry land.

The advisors turn to him. “You wish to be with the Mercury Pirates.”

“They are our allies,” Jin reminds them. “Their captain has maintained a contract and understanding that was held long before I became the king. I am already named the King of Pirates, why not wear it like a shield?”

The advisors are still whispering amongst each other. Jin can hear them like a buzz in his mind and they turn to him again.

“What is it you want? What do you propose then?”

“I’m the King of this realm and your loyal servant,” he reminds the advisors. “I do as you bid. But my interest is in keeping this kingdom alive as well. In keeping it informed of the outside world and avoiding disaster. Send me out with the Mercury Pirates to learn more of the world and return to my duties here at regular intervals. I believe that way I can be a more useful asset to this kingdom.”

A passionate and even persuasive argument. Jin eyes the advisors as they whisper among each other. It seems like forever but finally they turn to him.

“We will discuss this at length,” they tell him. “And return to you with an answer.”

It’s something. Jin nods and turns around to see Koki standing behind him. He’s wearing heels, fishnet stockings, a black skirt, white coat, and a hat with a blonde wig. If not for the face, he’d make a fairly attractive woman.

Jin snorts and Koki smiles at him.

“Always here to entertain.”

“Damn, I love you, Koki.”

It takes the advisors three days to get back to Jin with an answer. They call Kazuya in to the court at some point, using Jin as their mouthpiece to bring him in. But to Jin’s relief, Kazuya echoes Jin’s argument. That a king should be informed about what’s going on out there and that Jin is vulnerable being so blind to the outside world.

“He could be a first for kingdoms everywhere,” Kazuya says to the advisors right in front of Jin. “A king who actually knows what’s going on beyond his own walls. Other kingdoms will respond well to that, they’ll trust him more. It will make this kingdom more powerful.”

Jin wonders what would happen if Kazuya was king instead. He’s already a force to be reckoned with as the captain of pirates, he’d be something unstoppable as the king.

The advisors whisper in Jin’s head and Jin glances at the young pirate standing in front of him. Kazuya is good at acting like Jin is nothing more than his King. His eyes are trained perfectly on the advisors and nobody would guess they’d already shared a few kisses between them.

They both know it’s not allowed.

The advisors stop whispering and Jin turns his eyes to Kazuya. “They wish to know if you would consider being a scout for our kingdom, instead of sending me.”

“I’m a pirate captain, not a scout,” Kazuya reminds them. “In my experience, scouts rarely work effectively for kingdoms either. If you want a kingdom that is knowledgeable, you need your headpiece to see what’s going on with his own eyes. The Mercury Pirates would protect him and bring him back regularly to do his job on land.”

The advisors whisper among themselves again and Jin smiles to himself. He just can’t get over how strong and stoic Kazuya is, standing in front of advisors that are generally considered by the public to be ‘creepy’ and ‘unnerving.’ If Kazuya is afraid of them, he certainly doesn’t show it.

The advisors whisper to him and Jin nods to Kazuya. “They have what they need,” he tells him.

Kazuya bows to the advisors first. He then bows to Jin and shoots him a small smile before turning on his heel and walking out of the courtroom. Jin watches him go and listens to the advisors buzzing in his head.

A first for any kingdom. The first king to be sent out, to do more than any king before him has ever done.

It’s an exciting and welcome change.

They make a decision the night before the Mercury Pirates are set to leave and Jin agrees to their terms. As the King, he has duties on land. He is to govern the highest punishments, judge his citizens, and ensure the crops and peace is maintained on his own land. But the advisors had agreed that since he is being called the ‘King of Pirates’ anyway, he may as well become one.

He will travel with the Mercury Pirates and return regularly with them to do his duties on land. As their king, he will be their king on the sea and off the sea. It’s a first for any kingdom, but their arguments had worked.

The morning he leaves with the Mercury Pirates as one of them, Jin steps back onto their ship and breathes in the salty air. Behind him, Koki is bubbling with happiness as he helps Tatsuya carry the rum onto the ship in crates. Jin walks onto the deck where Kazuya is leaning against the mast, watching him with a small smile.

“King of Pirates,” Kazuya hums. “Now, you really are a pirate.”

Jin beams and Kazuya pushes himself off the mast. He wraps his arms around Jin’s shoulders and leans in. “Does that make me the Queen of Pirates?”

“Makes you whatever you want to be,” Jin breathes, his hands holding Kazuya’s waist. Queen or not, Jin knows he’ll never be able to control Kazuya. He’s a force all by himself and that’s how Jin likes it.

The two of them with Taguchi, Koki, Tatsuya, and Nakamaru behind them are a force to be reckoned with. An unlikely group of different individuals that are powerful when they’re together.

Kazuya smirks. “Well, you may be the King of Pirates, but on my ship I’m in charge.”

“Aye, aye, captain,” Jin purrs as Kazuya pulls him in for a quick kiss.

“Alright, alright, ya soddin’ lovebirds,” Cookie grumbles as he climbs up to his post. “Yer gonna make me lose my lunch, ya will.”

Jin spots Nakamaru, Taguchi, Tatsuya, and Koki eyeing them and grins as he lets go of Kazuya. “Alright, fine. I’ll keep the PDA to a minimum.”

“Appreciated,” Nakamaru winces.

Tatsuya rolls his eyes and heads off somewhere else. Taguchi doesn’t look like he knows what to do and Koki looks more amused than anything else.

“All hands on deck!” Kazuya shouts to his crew. “Get to your posts!”

The crew happily rush to follow his orders and as the ship finally leaves the docks Jin feels a weight taken off his shoulders. He feels air rush through his lungs and it’s refreshing. The King of Pirates, a name he wears like a shield, like a badge of honour. He smiles and walks up to Kazuya’s side, watching as the ship pulls away from the docks and out towards the open sea.

Koki rushes to the front of the ship, leaning far over the edge with a happy shout. Taguchi chases after Tatsuya who climbs halfway up Cookie’s lookout pole and wraps his thighs around it so he hangs easily. Nakamaru folds his arms and smiles at the sight, all of them are free and happy.

As the ship reaches the open sea, leaving Jin’s kingdom behind like a dot in the distance, the wind whips their hair back as Tatsuya clings to the pole and sings, his tune carrying along the waves.

Kazuya takes Jin’s hand and smiles at him. “You’re one of us now,” he says.

It’s the happiest and most excited Jin’s ever been in his life.

-

The drip of cold water wrenches Jin out of his thoughts and back into reality. He’s back in his cell and the trial is still ongoing. Jin reaches his hands up and rubs the tears from his dirty cheeks. He stares ahead and tries to ignore the residue of rain that continuously drips from the grate above him.

_He’s dead,_ the advisors had told him. _He’s dead._

Jin looks at the chains binding his wrists together and feels another bolt of pain shoot through his chest. It hurts that he doesn’t know, that he can’t see them. Koki, Tatsuya, Taguchi, Nakamaru...Kazuya. He doesn’t know what happened to any of them. His arrest had been so sudden, so fast, they’d taken him and thrown him in this cell without telling him anything.

If they’d found the Mercury Pirates, they’d have done something to them.

Maybe the pirates got away. Maybe the advisors were lying about Kazuya being dead. Jin doesn’t know and he has no way of finding out either.

Another drop of freezing cold water comes from the grates overhead and runs down Jin’s back. He closes his eyes and rests his elbows on his knees, his chains dangling, ringing in his ears like an unfriendly reminder. Whatever life he had, it’s over.

The advisors have him now. They’re never going to let him go.

The King of Pirates. The King of the Mars Realm. The only robot king who was ever capable of loving another.

As night falls and his cold, damp cell is lit in blue from the hue of the moon above him, Jin closes his eyes and thinks about a twelve year old pirate with fire in his eyes and knew no fear. He thinks about the last time he saw him with his smile that could warm the coldest heart. His pinky finger twitches, missing the ring it once adorned and he mutters a small prayer under his breath.

If he could have seen outside, if he could have seen the faraway view of the ocean, he’d have seen the small dot of a pirate ship sailing out to sea with its flag lowered in mourning and Tatsuya’s song carrying over the wind.

  **“ _We’ll come back for you_.” **


	2. King of Pirates Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once upon a time, more shit happened.

The grand doors of the courtroom open as the prisoner is brought in, head bowed and body shivering. He’d been left out in the cold the night before—the grate over his cell had done nothing to protect him from the rain.   
  
His clothes are damp and wet and his hair is dripping cold water over the marble floors. Chains clink as he is dragged before the crowd, all of whom stare at him like he’s their entertainment. Like he should answer for the ‘crimes’ the advisors arrested him for.   
  
A king who fell in love. Perhaps to the educated and untrained ear it’s a ridiculous charge, but to the people here it’s serious.   
  
After all, a king should love nothing, no one, more than their own Kingdom. No king in the history of the world had fallen in love—technically it should be impossible. Being half-robot meant that human part of themselves should have been taken away.   
  
Jin is different.   
  
But then, Jin has always been different.   
  
Their king. The King of Mars, King of Pirates stood before them, a shadow of the man he used to be. His tag, his mark of red, glared at the audience; branded into his neck, taking away his name and identity and replacing him instead with a number. The year, month, and day he was born.   
  
They’d stripped him down of everything, including his name.   
  
“Trial Two of the prisoner will commence,” the judge declares as the citizens sit down. Jin keeps his eyes closed and he doesn’t need to open them to know they’re all staring at him. Accusing him of a wrong he couldn’t have helped committing.   
  
“Does the accused have anything to say in his defence before we begin?”   
  
Jin can feel and hear the muffled whispers of the advisors. They want him to repent, to admit that what he’d done was wrong. To say he’ll never do it again now that the crime he’d committed, the person he’d loved, is dead and gone.   
  
“ _Say it_ ,” they whisper to him. “ _Say you love nothing more than your kingdom. Say you’ll never do it again. Say you will do everything we tell you to do. Say he’s dead. Say his name. Say it_.”   
  
Jin swallows hard. There’s a lump in his throat that never quite went away when he heard about the death but he refuses to say it, to deny it ever happened. To regret that it ever did would be a lie. Even now, he doesn’t regret what he’d done.   
  
The advisors hurt him. A spike of pain shoots through his head like someone forcing a rod through his ears but Jin doesn’t make a noise. His eyes clench in pain as the advisors continue hissing in his ear.   
  
“ _Say his name_.”   
  
Jin holds his breath and sweat beads form on his forehead with the pain. When they finally let up, he sags in his seat and pants with exertion. Pain still comes in waves, attacking his head and body over and over. He thinks the pain should be worse. Maybe he’s finally becoming numb to it all.   
  
The sightless judge continues to face forward, seeing nothing but seemingly omniscient. Its only feature, a wide mouth, opens at last.   
  
“Let the trial begin.”   
  
Jin keeps his eyes closed and head bowed. His hair curtains his face and it’s only a little comforting against the glares directed at him. He’ll never say his name in this room. Never.   
  
\-   
  
“Your turn.”   
  
“Jin, this is stupid.”   
  
“I know, that’s why it’s good.”   
  
“I can’t believe I agreed to playing twenty questions on a hill in the freezing cold. I could be inside getting drunk right now.”   
  
“We’ve just got another twenty minutes until the sunrise. Now come on, your turn. Tell me something nobody else knows about you.”   
  
“What kind of question is that?”   
  
“Uh, a good one? Now come on, spill it. I told you mine.”   
  
“Yes, and I can’t believe you’re still the king after that incident.”   
  
“Nobody got hurt. Well, the horse did but he had it coming.”   
  
They’re sitting on a hill. The tallest hill on Jin’s island was called ‘Amai,’ so named because the apple trees that grew on this hill happened to be the sweetest things ever naturally grown. Despite the inviting name, it’s not actually a popular spot because it’s far away from the kingdom and generally cold at night.   
  
Perfect for Jin and Kazuya to be alone. Amai Hill offered a perfect view of the sea, the stars, and the sunrise completely unhindered by buildings or trees. It’s magnificent to watch. Even if it is a bit cold because no trees at the top of the hill also means nothing to stop the biting winter wind from hitting the two of them.   
  
Kazuya shivers and pulls Jin’s coat closer to himself. He’d taken it the second he realised they were going to be cold.   
  
Kazuya is nineteen and Jin is twenty-one. The Mercury Pirates are as good as ever and everything is perfect.   
  
“Come on.” Jin nudges Kazuya’s arm. “Something nobody else knows about you—not even Cookie.”   
  
Kazuya pretends to think for a moment before leaning in and smiling at Jin. “I hate peas.”   
  
“Oh, come on!” Jin whines. Kazuya cracks up laughing and Jin lightly smacks his arm. “Cop out,” he grumbles.   
  
Kazuya leans against Jin and buries his face in Jin’s shoulder. He inhales deeply and Jin wraps his arm around Kazuya’s middle. Jin can feel the edges of sleep pulling at his eyes but he’d wanted to do this. He wanted to watch the sunrise with Kazuya, enjoy something slow and beautiful before they go back to what they normally do.   
  
Jin rules the lands as their king and that leaves very little time to spend with Kazuya. When they’re out with the Mercury Pirates, they get time to be together but it’s very rare they get to be alone. So this is nice, just the two of them and the sunrise.   
  
Kazuya presses a small kiss to Jin’s neck and Jin closes his eyes. This is another part of their relationship they don’t get to do as often as Jin would like.   
  
Which is a shame because Jin loves Kazuya’s kisses.   
  
“My turn,” Jin breathes as he watches the skies lightning slowly with the dawning of the sun. “Ask me anything.”   
  
“Marry me,” Kazuya breathes, his fingers slipping between Jin’s and holding on tight. The rings on their pinkies press against each other slightly—a reminder of the promise they’d made not too long ago.   
  
Jin grins and shakes his head. “Thought I already did.”   
  
Kazuya’s smile lights up his entire face and especially his eyes. He’s so beautiful that Jin forgets to breathe as the younger pirate leans in and kisses him gently on the lips. Jin can’t help himself. He knows he should be more careful, that being caught by any commoner like this with the pirate captain would be pretty bad, but he never can be careful when he’s around Kazuya.   
  
He just forgets to.   
  
He’s so busy kissing Kazuya back that he barely notices the sun rise at last. The two of them pull away just in time, turning to watch as the light of daybreak brings a brilliant purple hue that flashes across the sky for a couple of moments. Jin hears Kazuya gasp and he can’t help but be amazed as well. He hadn’t expected this.   
  
The colour fades to the natural blue sky and Kazuya snuggles tighter into Jin’s side. They watch the sun slowly rising and Kazuya smiles.   
  
“Marry me again,” he demands quietly.   
  
Jin laughs. He kisses the top of Kazuya’s head and hugs him close. Kazuya smells like vanilla and smoke. It’s an intoxicating scent that Jin can’t seem to get enough of. He closes his eyes and keeps his face buried in Kazuya’s hair, his arms locked tight around the other.   
  
He wishes he could be here forever.   
  
\-   
  
By the time Jin is twenty-two years old, the advisors finally make a decision that impacts his life with the Mercury Pirates. They announce one day, out of the blue, that Jin has to learn to be a king. A real king.   
  
At first it confuses Jin, after all he’s been doing exactly what they told him to do. They allow him to travel the world, to learn from the world and from his experiences, and then to come back to his island and rule peacefully for a time before he sets off again. This system has been working perfectly for Jin, but the advisors, evidently, hadn’t liked it.   
  
Jin is reminded, when they tell him that they’re sending him away, that he is not completely in control. He always knew that. He knows a king is controlled willingly by his advisors. A king is always at the mercy of the advisors and that is how the system works. The advisors always know better. But somehow, being out and free with the Mercury Pirates, for one blissful moment, helps Jin forget that he is nothing but a puppet.   
  
So they send him away to learn to be a ‘real king.’   
  
Their definition of a _real king_ is Koyama Keiichiro. Which is how Jin gets separated from the Mercury Pirates and sent alone to Sunshine Bay.   
  
Stepping off the ship, Jin is greeted at the docks by both Nishikido Ryo and Yamashita Tomohisa. Despite obviously being happy to see him, they both maintain a professional air as Jin steps off the ship with one advisor in tow.   
  
Both bow to both Jin and the advisor. Jin returns the bow with a nod and turns to look at his advisor.   
  
“ _Six months_ ,” his advisor whispers in his head. “ _Learn from Koyama. Return to us. Trained._ ”   
  
It’s a soft whisper, but it feels more like a threat. Almost as if they’d seen how close he was to Kazuya and they hadn’t liked it. Still, Jin must obey. If he obeys, he gets his pirates (and, more importantly, Kazuya) back. He nods to his advisor and watches as the faceless creature glides back onto the ship to take him back to the Realm of Mars.   
  
Jin waits until the ship officially sets sail before turning back to Yamapi and Ryo, both of whom are grinning at him.   
  
“Man,” Ryo breaks the silence first and pats his shoulder. “What the hell did you do to piss off your advisors?”   
  
“I have no idea.” Jin finally allows the formality slump out of his body and lets the two of them walk him towards the castle. “But I’m hoping this excursion is going to pacify them.”   
  
“Just be a good boy in front of the advisors here,” Yamapi advises. “We’ll take you to places you’re more used to later.”   
  
Jin loves them both.   
  
They take him to the castle and lead him to the throne room. Yamapi and Ryo stop just short of the door and tell the nearest guard to announce Jin’s arrival. As the guard does, Yamapi shoots Jin a small grin and heads away with Ryo just as the doors open to let Jin into the throne room.   
  
He’s been here before. Plenty of times. When the kingdoms negotiate, they do so with the thoughts of their advisors in their heads and a face to face meeting—in the throne room. This is not only comforting, but it’s also traditional and a show of good faith.   
  
Where Jin’s courtroom is regal and styled in red and black designs with his crest ingrained into the wall, Koyama’s courtroom is a lot lighter. Enormous stain-glass windows let the light in from every angle, bathing the stone-built room in very light hues of yellow and pink from the glass.   
  
The style of each kingdom is different and the atmosphere of the heart, the throne room, is designed to make everyone who enters the room realise what kind of kingdom it is. In the case of Sunshine Bay, the throne room reflects the name as the natural light filtering through the windows gives Jin the distinct impression that nothing happens in the dark here.   
  
Because there is no dark. Or there doesn’t outwardly appear to be any.   
  
“Akanishi,” Koyama greets as he gets off his throne. Just like in every single kingdom, there is a wall of advisors behind him staring silently as they stand behind the throne itself. Koyama comes up to Jin and his smile is wide and genuine as he pats Jin’s shoulder. “Welcome.”   
  
It’s cordial, professional, and exactly how they’re expected to behave in front of the advisors. Jin knows better than most what he is expected to do, but it still takes him a little by surprise how attentive Koyama’s advisors are. Advisors have no distinguishing features on their faces—no eyes, no noses—nothing that even resembles a human, but they do watch. Kings in particular can feel when the attention of the advisors are trained on them.   
  
Where Jin’s own advisors will be watching him, they’ll also be watching the courtroom, watching the guards, watching Koki, and everything.   
  
Koyama’s advisors are watching him and only him. Jin can feel their attention trained specifically on Koyama and it’s a little shocking that they’re all watching him that closely. They’re not even concerned with Jin, they’re watching Koyama.   
  
“Come with me,” Koyama instructs him.   
  
Koyama leads Jin out of the throne room and Jin doesn’t look back, but he can still feel the advisors training their attention on Koyama’s back. It’s an unsettling feeling when only one is watching, but when they’re all watching, it’s almost unbearable how aware of himself he has to be.   
  
Koyama leads him out and down the hallowed halls of his palace. Masuda Takahisa and Kato Shigeaki follow after them silently until Koyama leads them all into what appears to be a meeting room. Guards stand at the door saying nothing as Koyama enters the room and leads Jin, Massu, and Shige inside. When the door closes, Jin checks the room quickly.   
  
There’s a large table in the middle of the room with twelve chairs. The walls are covered in portraits of past kings, people Jin doesn’t recognise at all because Koyama has been ruling longer than Jin and Jin never met his predecessors. There’s also no sign of an advisor or a guard and he glances at Koyama to see the other looks a little relaxed as well.   
  
“How do you do that?” Jin asks. “That was—what was that?”   
  
Shige and Massu take a seat at the table, Jin follows with Koyama and watches as the king’s shoulders relax just a little with the knowledge that he’s not being watched.   
  
“That’s not what yours do?” Koyama asks. “It’s normal. Advisors watch their kings.”   
  
“No, they don’t,” Jin chuckles, almost in disbelief. “My advisors are there, sure, but they don’t watch me all the time. I feel when their eyes are on me but it’s never long and they’re never all watching me at the same time.”   
  
If they ever did, something would be heinously wrong.   
  
“Mine are always watching me,” Koyama replies. “They’ve been watching me ever since I became king. It’s like that every day.”   
  
Jin frowns. He can feel when eyes are on him. When the advisors watch him, it makes him cautious about his actions and words, almost on an instinctive level because he’s connected to them. But he’s never had so many eyes on his form at the same time. He’s not sure how Koyama can stand it.   
  
Shige looks up. He’s the archivist and there isn’t a lot he doesn’t know. The official title is ‘Royal Archivist’ and it’s something Jin doesn’t have in his own kingdom. There’s a lot Koyama has in this kingdom that Jin doesn’t have in his own.   
  
“So,” Koyama sits at the table and watches Jin with a small, sympathetic smile. “You’re being punished?”   
  
“Feels like it,” Jin admits quietly with a wary glance at Massu and Shige. They’re close to Koyama, which means they obviously can be trusted, but Jin’s experiences with them have been very few and far between. He usually deals with Koyama’s second-in-commands, Yamapi and Ryo.   
  
“Don’t worry,” Koyama assures him with a gesture to Massu and Shige. “They can be trusted. I trust them like I assume you trust your pirate crew.”   
  
Jin nods—he trusts them all. He misses them all.   
  
“My advisors wanted you to spend the next six months sitting and watching me rule but I felt that would be boring and cruel,” Koyama explains. “Your advisors brought you here to learn...supposedly how to be a real king. Nevertheless, sitting you down for six months is pointless so I’ve decided that you can rule alongside me instead.”   
  
Jin frowns. “How is that going to work?” he asks. “I can’t hear your advisors and I have no jurisdiction over your lands.”   
  
“No, but you are a king,” Koyama replies gently. “You know how to rule. Perhaps a second opinion could prove useful in these lands.”   
  
Jin doubts it. His style of ruling is different to Koyama’s, which is why Koyama’s kingdom is known as the Sunshine Kingdom and Jin’s is known as the place where you keep all your valuables strapped tight to yourself for fear of losing them.   
  
Still, it sounds a hell of a lot better than sitting and watching Koyama rule for six months, so Jin is once again grateful that he was sent here and not to Arashi.   
  
The first week is an adjustment. Jin is given his own quarters near Koyama and spends the first week familiarising himself with the kingdom as the place he is to live in for the next six months. The differences between his kingdom and Koyama’s are staggering. The way people greet each other, the way crime is handled, the fact that the sun shines about three hours longer here, nights are shorter, and everything is legitimately handled and monitored.   
  
When Jin received goods and things from the Mercury Pirates, their treaty required that Jin never ask where they came from and just assume they were legally bought somewhere (despite Jin knowing that was never the case).   
  
In Koyama’s kingdom, when he receives anything, it’s legitimate and legal. Everything is so above board it makes Jin’s head spin.   
  
For the first week, the advisors watch them both so closely that there is no way they are getting out of the castle. Jin knows Koyama and the way he rules, but it’s quite different to watch him in action. Koyama sits, a regal and untouchable figure on the throne. When he makes decisions, when he passes down judgement, it’s with no emotion or expression.   
  
He’s the very definition of a king whose outer appearance may be human but his function is robotic enough for the advisors to control him. He’s what Jin’s advisors want him to be.   
  
Shigeaki Kato (and after about two days, Jin resorts to calling him Shige just like everyone else) almost always has his head in a book. As the Royal Archivist, he reads everything and there is very little he doesn’t know in theory. Because of the connection between Sunshine Bay and Kanjani, Shige has access to not only their own books but also books from Kanjani and it doesn’t surprise Jin that he’s read them all.   
  
“Did you know the Mercury Pirates go as far back as three kings?” Shige tells him once after dinner. Jin finds himself in Shige’s library because he can’t leave the castle and the archivist is hidden behind so many stacks of books that Jin can actually only see his spiky black hair sticking out from behind a thick book detailing the heroic adventures of Kimura Takuya.   
  
Jin picks at the armchair he’s curled up in and looks up, half-interested. “Really?”   
  
“Yeah,” Shige answers, a noise of a page turning as he continues and reads at the same time. “It goes back three generations of piracy. Kamenashi-kun’s father served you and the king before you. His grandfather served him too and his great-grandfather served the king before him.”   
  
Jin frowns. He isn’t told much of the previous kings. Usually because he doesn’t need to. Whatever Jin is made of has some part of the previous king anyway. But the only things he is told about them—when he needs to know more—is what crucial decisions changed the way the land is ruled. Like the one before Jin who outlawed the death penalty.   
  
When Jin thinks about his pirates, he feels a small but familiar pang of pain brought out by how much he misses them. Especially Kazuya, who has only known piracy all his life. It sort of makes sense that this goes back as far as his great-grandfather.   
  
“Here’s what I find curious,” Shige continues, another noise of a page turning as he talks. “There are three kings who had dealings with the Mercury Pirates, two before you, and yet you’re the only one who is referred to as the ‘King of Pirates.’”   
  
Jin stops picking at his chair and looks up to see Shige’s eyes curiously studying him from behind his pile of books. Shige, like almost everyone else on this island, has only known Sunshine Bay and never, ever steps out to see the world except for the annual End of Year Festival. But despite that, it’s hard to tell if he actually knows more than he lets on or if everything he knows is from every book he’s ever torn through in his life.   
  
“No king before me has ever left the island to travel with pirates,” Jin points out.   
  
“I would have thought your advisors would want to keep you on the island,” Shige replies calmly. “That’s why Koyama’s will never let him leave. He’s the king. His place is here.”   
  
Jin blinks and it’s the first time he’s ever had to think about it. It’s the first time it ever occurs to him that the way advisors handle their kings is different. Before now, Jin’s never thought about it but it makes him realise his own advisors are different to Koyama’s. There’s a personality in there after all.   
  
He stops hanging out with Shige (because most of the time Shige isn’t talking, he’s reading) and that’s how Jin finds himself—day four—in the kitchens with Masuda Takahisa.   
  
Known as ‘Massu’ by everyone, the guy is the core cause of some of the most hideous clothes to come out of Sunshine Bay. His job, however, has nothing to do with clothes and everything to do with food. Some of the more exotic dishes—made with ingredients most people would never think to mix—come from Sunshine Bay where Massu spends a lot of his time in the kitchens.   
  
“Try this one,” Massu says, pushing a plate of what appears to be raw meat at Jin.   
  
Jin immediately regrets spending his day here and picks up a chopstick. He pokes the meat and watches as it wobbles by itself. It’s slimy and shaped like a fat leech with pointy ends.   
  
“What is it?” he asks, wondering if he should write a note telling Kazuya to kill Massu when he later finds his body.   
  
“We had it brought in from Vena,” Massu explains, going back to put a lid on a pot that is just starting to smoke. “It’s called Rego Tails.”   
  
Jin doesn’t even know what a ‘Rego’ is, let alone why it has pointy tails. He watches Massu warily and sighs as he picks up the other chopstick and attempts to pick up one of the tails. They slip easily from the chopsticks and Jin has to try three times before he gives up and just lifts the bowl closer to his face.   
  
“I’m not gonna die, am I?” Jin asks. He’s sure one of the tails just moved.   
  
Massu just laughs and slides a bowl of rice at him. “You’ll be fine,” he assures him. “If I was gonna poison you, I’d have done it the day you got here.”   
  
That’s not reassuring.   
  
Jin takes a deep breath and manages to slide one of the tails closer to the edge of the bowl so he can use the chopsticks to just kind of push it into his mouth. The pointy tail stabs his tongue as the rest of the meat slides in and Jin puts the bowl down once one is in his mouth.   
  
The texture is disgusting. It’s kind of like having another tongue on his and the points keep stabbing his mouth. Jin closes his eyes and chomps his teeth down, opening the tail. The scent and taste hits all at once when whatever was in the tail leaks out in his mouth and Jin has to grab the table to stop himself spitting everything out.   
  
It’s salty. Very salty. It shoots up his nose, filling his senses, touching every single taste bud on his tongue and making his eyes water. The tail is just slime and rubber, but it seems to empty out as whatever was inside fills Jin’s mouth and he struggles to swallow.   
  
In the end, he has to force himself to swallow and the second he does he feels his stomach tighten with the urge to vomit. His eyes are watering and he gasps as soon as he can breathe again.   
  
“Massu!” Jin splutters. “What the fuck was that?!”   
  
Massu turns around and looks at Jin, momentarily confused, before he looks at the bowl and something clicks in his mind. “Oh,” he says nonchalantly. “I forgot to cook it.”   
  
Jin never goes near the kitchen again.   
  
On the fifth day, Jin finds out that Ryo has to return to Kanjani Island. Although he’s known for quite some time that Ryo is a switch, he’s never seen Ryo or Uchi actually doing anything that switches do. With Uchi’s death, Ryo really was the only remaining switch in the world.   
  
Sometime in the afternoon, Yamapi appears in the courtroom and bows in front of Koyama. Jin is sitting next to him and he’s been watching the morning petitions. Common folk from the village come to the castle to ask for things from the crown. It happens in Jin’s island as well, so he’s more than used to that process. But when Yamapi appears, Jin finds himself hoping the other came here to take him away from the advisors.   
  
He’s had years and years of ignoring them standing silently behind him but Koyama’s just seem more intense.   
  
“Yamashita,” Koyama addresses him formally. “What do you need?”   
  
“Akanishi,” Yamapi requests. “Nishikido is going to return to Kanjani but I need someone else to help him transition. May I request that Akanishi come and help me?”   
  
Jin blinks. He didn’t know a transition required help but Koyama happily nods him away and Jin gets up to follow Yamapi out of the courtroom. He follows silently and Yamapi waits until they’re out of earshot of the guards before he turns to Jin and smiles.   
  
“You can thank me now,” he announces.   
  
Jin feels his shoulders relax and pats Yamapi’s arm. “Thanks,” he sighs. “That…I don’t like his advisors.”   
  
“They’re intense,” Yamapi agrees and starts leading Jin down the hallway. “I wasn’t lying though, I could use a hand. When Uchi was here, he used to transition with Ryo and it was fine, but ever since he died we’ve had to help Ryo in turns.”   
  
“Help him?” Jin questions as he follows Yamapi. “I thought a switch just had to close their eyes and...well...switch to the other body?”   
  
Yamapi stops for a moment to think about it. “Yes and no,” he finally decides, leading Jin the rest of the way down the hall. “There’s a little more to it and it’s mostly mental, emotional stuff. Usually we don’t have to do anything and the transition works with no problems, but occasionally we’ve had to step in.”   
  
Jin doesn’t understand at all and when they finally reach Ryo’s room, he spots the switch sitting on his bed in a dark blue bathrobe.   
  
“Hey, Jin,” Ryo greets him with a cheerful smile. “Glad to be out of there?”   
  
“Always.” Jin spots the other bed in the room and doesn’t comment on it. Even he knows that Uchi’s death, however long ago, is still a sore spot for Sunshine Bay and Kanjani. Especially for Ryo.   
  
“So,” Jin turns back to Ryo. “What do we need to do for the switch? I’ve never seen you actually do it before.”   
  
“Usually, you don’t have to do anything,” Ryo explains as Yamapi moves towards the bed and starts fluffing up the pillows and pushing the blankets back. Ryo gets up to let him work and walks up to Jin. “It’s alright, you just get to watch. If something goes wrong, Pi’s got it.”   
  
Jin wasn’t aware something could go wrong with this.   
  
Ryo turns back to the bed and sheds his robe, wearing a simple tank top and boxer shorts underneath. He climbs into the bed and pulls the blanket over himself as Yamapi goes to sit at the end of the bed. Jin takes the seat next to his bed and looks at Ryo curiously.   
  
“When are you coming back?” Jin asks.   
  
“Two weeks time,” Ryo promises. “Don’t get into trouble, alright?”   
  
“You’re talking to the King of Pirates,” Yamapi laughs. “Of course, he’s gonna get in trouble.”   
  
Ryo grins at Jin and closes his eyes. He shifts in bed and takes a deep breath as if he were simply going to sleep. Yamapi leans over and takes Ryo’s left hand. He feels for his pulse at his wrist and watches closely.   
  
Two minutes pass and Ryo’s breathing gets slower and slower. Jin watches in silence as Ryo’s chest, which was rising and falling with his breathing, stops suddenly. His body jolts and Yamapi holds him down to the bed with one hand, his other still feeling Ryo’s pulse.   
  
Ryo lets out a long breath and his head finally tilts a little on the pillow.   
  
“Aaaand he’s gone,” Yamapi confirms, finally taking his hands off the other. He turns to Jin. “Feel his head.”   
  
Jin tentatively reaches over and puts his hand on Ryo’s forehead. It’s cold, his entire body is freezing and it’s as if he’s dead.   
  
He pulls his hand back and shivers. “That’s freaky.”   
  
Yamapi shrugs. “I’ve gotten used to it. When he’s not using this body, it might as well be a dead one. I guess it’s because he’s not in it anymore.”   
  
Jin watches Ryo, he feels his arm and it’s as cold as the rest of him. His chest isn’t moving. He’s well and truly gone. Hopefully he’s somewhere in Kanjani waking up in his other body.   
  
He turns to Yamapi. “So, what could go wrong?”   
  
Yamapi tucks Ryo’s hand under the blanket and leans back with a sigh. “Well...up until Uchi died, we never had any problems. I didn’t even know anything could go wrong because...well, I didn’t handle this. Uchi did. But it’s happened once or twice. The transition sometimes doesn’t go so smoothly, he doesn’t leave his body, or he does and then he comes back and starts choking because his body isn’t ready for him to come back. It’s tricky stuff.”   
  
Jin glances at the empty bed on the other side of the room and frowns. “What...what happened to Uchi? The report I got said he just died.”   
  
“That’s pretty much what happened,” Yamapi confirms solemnly. “He was here and his body in Kanjani was in stasis. He had to go back to Kanjani and Ryo was supposed to stay here. I didn’t see it but Ryo came tearing out of this room screaming and…” He pauses and frowns. “It was just the way he died. You saw what happened just now right? The way Ryo left?”   
  
Jin nods and glances at Ryo. One shudder, one long breath and Ryo was gone. That was how the transition was supposed to happen.   
  
“Well.” Yamapi frowns. “Ryo said that when he ‘transitioned’ it happened differently. Instead of doing just what Ryo did, blood started coming out of his mouth and Ryo knew he hadn’t gone to Kanjani, he’d died.”   
  
Jin hums. “But, even if he did die, he was supposed to have woken up in Kanjani anyway. He still had one more body.”   
  
“That’s where things get messy,” Yamapi shrugs. “Koyama contacted Kanjani Island through the Rose, to check if Uchi had gone through and they said he hadn’t woken up. He was cold. If he’d transitioned, he would have woken up but he never did. Both bodies just died.”   
  
Jin glances at Ryo for a moment and Yamapi shakes his head. “Don’t worry. Ryo went through. If he died, we’d know right away. I’ve seen enough transitions to see what’s supposed to happen. He went through fine.”   
  
Yamapi gets up and tucks Ryo in before patting Jin’s shoulder. “Let’s find something to do,” he suggests. “The advisors probably won’t let you out of the castle yet, but did you know Koyama has a huge bath downstairs?”   
  
Jin finds it easier to relax around Yamapi. Of everyone in Sunshine Bay, Yamapi is probably the easiest to relax around. They head down to a room underneath the castle where there is an enormous bath. Jin had pictured something similar to what he has in his own castle. A tub big enough for ten people. What he sees instead is what appears to be a hole in the ground made by nature and bubbling with natural minerals and volcanic points.   
  
Tegoshi is already relaxing in the water when Yamapi sheds his clothes, washes himself quickly with the water provided in the bucket and hops into the bath. It’s big enough to fit every member of Koyama’s court and the Mercury Pirates. It’s huge.   
  
Jin washes himself first and hops into the water after Yamapi. The water is steaming hot, but his muscles thank him for it as he relaxes immediately and leans back into the stone walls of the bath.   
  
“That’s better,” he sighs.   
  
“Poor thing,” Tegoshi chuckles. “It hasn’t even been one week yet. How are you going to survive six months with us? Sunshine Bay must be very different to what you’re used to.”   
  
That somehow feels like an understatement to Jin. Sunshine Bay is the opposite of what Jin is used to.   
  
“Well,” Yamapi chuckles and looks at Jin. “No pirates. No weird back alley deals—”   
  
“We never had back alley deals,” Jin corrects him quickly. “If someone is going to stab you in my kingdom, they’ll stab you from the front, not from behind.”   
  
“How honest,” Tegoshi laughs and shakes his head. “I knew there was a reason I liked your kingdom.”   
  
Jin leans back into the bath and tries to let the hot water soothe him but he can’t stop thinking about it. His kingdom. They’re being ruled by the advisors and a proxy in his absence, and whilst he knows his kingdom will be fine, he can’t help but worry.   
  
Most of all, he can’t stop thinking about the Mercury Pirates. They know they’re not allowed to see him in these six months and, although Jin is somewhat used to spending long periods of time away from Kazuya, it somehow seems more painful and more poignant that he has to be here, in Sunshine Bay, knowing he’s not going to see Kazuya for a full six months.   
  
The only saving grace is that he had enough time to tell Koki to go with the pirates and not stay in the kingdom. Koki is his Joker, but he belongs with the Mercury Pirates just like Jin feels like he does too.   
  
Unfortunately, his advisors just don’t agree on that.   
  
As if sensing what was on his mind, or reading it outright, Tegoshi smiles at Jin and shakes his head. “Don’t worry,” he assures him. “These six months will fly by and you’ll be back with your kingdom and your pirates in no time.”   
  
Kazuya’s face flashes in Jin’s mind. He looks down at the ring on his pinky finger and bites his lip. He can’t spend the entire six months pining and missing Kazuya, but he can’t help himself. To suddenly be separated from him like this is unexpectedly painful.   
  
“Hope so,” he mutters and glances at Yamapi.   
  
Yamapi doesn’t say anything, just watches him like he knows and he knows there’s nothing they can do. All they can do is play along, be good in front of the advisors.   
  
Because in the end of the day, the advisors are in charge and they always have been. If Jin wants his pirates, he has to play by their rules or be damned for it.   
  
He finally gets out of the castle after one full week. The advisors, finally calming down to his presence, relax their staring on both Jin and Koyama and let them out for the night. The official excuse is that Koyama has things to do in the village, but the second they’re out Koyama takes him straight to the tavern.   
  
It’s the one place that doesn’t surprise Jin. The dark walls, the long bench full of drinks and glasses, the tables spread all around, and the constant scent of smoke and alcohol—it’s the most familiar place to Jin. When Koyama takes him through the doors, he almost feels like he’s home.   
  
“Finally!” Yamapi cheers from where he’s already half-past drunk at the table. “You took your fucking time.”   
  
“Excuse us for being kings,” Koyama chuckles and goes to join them at the table. Shige is drunk, his face bright pink, but he has a tall stack of papers in front of him and he’s feverishly going through them with a quill.   
  
Masuda has all the food spread around the table and as Jin sits down, he notices the obvious absence of Tegoshi. The ninja, however sneaky he must be for his missions, usually makes his presence known when he’s not working.   
  
“What the hell are you doing, Shige?” Koyama laughs and sits down next to him. He taps at the papers that Shige is furiously pouring over. “You’re drunk, you shouldn’t be working!”   
  
“I tried telling him that already,” Yamapi rolls his eyes and lifts his drink to his lips. “But noooo, he wouldn’t listen to me.”   
  
“I have this idea,” Shige says, his eyes never letting up from the papers he’s writing on. “Something that’ll make everything easier…”   
  
“The last time you wrote something whilst drunk, you told the Queen of the Akiba Province to show you her cleavage,” Koyama points out with a playful smack to the back of Shige’s head.   
  
Jin looks up. The Queen of the Akiba Province. He’d had a brush with her before. He vividly remembers the Mercury Pirates’ ship running through those rocky waters, the sound of the most beautiful sirens and the Queen, Maeda Atsuko herself, coming up onto the ship to take Jin away.   
  
Well...she tried. Kazuya threatened to shoot her in the face before she could actually manage it though.   
  
“You told Maeda Atsuko to show you her cleavage?” Jin laughs at Shige. “Why?”   
  
“I needed to send a diplomatic envoy to the Century Islands,” Koyama explains as the barmaid brings them all drinks. “But they had to travel through the Akiba Province in order to get there because of Hurricane Iijima wrecking through SMAP Islands. So I got Shige to write a letter asking the sirens to allow my envoy safe passage.”   
  
Koyama pats Shige’s head. “He wrote it whilst drunk,” he explains. “And the letter asked in very raunchy terms that he wanted to see down her top and up her skirt.”   
  
“Pervert,” Masuda chuckles, clearly amused.   
  
“That took balls,” Yamapi notes as he finishes his drink. “I just wish I could have seen her face when she read the note.”   
  
Jin blinks at them incredulously. “Was your envoy able to get through alright?”   
  
“They did,” Koyama sighs. “Turns out Maeda has a sense of humour and she laughed. But my crew did come back somewhat lovesick and crazy out of their heads. The sirens had their way with them, but didn’t take them underwater to drown—I guess that was the compromise.”   
  
“This is a brilliant idea, I swear it.” Shige taps at the papers he has. “I’m writing a contingency plan for the SMAP Islands. That way, when Hurricane Iijima comes back—because it always does—they’ll be able to protect themselves.”   
  
Yamapi hums. “That is a brilliant idea, except I’m pretty sure the Kings of SMAP Islands actually like Hurricane Iijima. They like the destructive weather.”   
  
Jin’s heard that too. SMAP Islands are the only area where there are five kings. Officially the area is five islands, connected with bridges. The Kings rule in harmony and peace together, and Jin’s never sure how that actually works but he never thought to ask either. Clearly it works for them. Yet, a little known fact was that the SMAP Kings somewhat enjoyed turbulent weather too. Hence why they established their presence in an area that was prone to hurricanes.   
  
Koyama reaches over and gently takes the quill from Shige’s hand, as well as all the papers. Shige whines but doesn’t exactly move to stop Koyama as he successfully takes his work away and replaces it with a large glass of alcohol instead.   
  
“There you go,” Koyama purrs affectionately, petting Shige’s head as the archivist resumes drinking instead.   
  
Jin looks around but he still hasn’t spotted any hint of Tegoshi. He turns to Koyama “Where’s your ninja?”   
  
“Out on an errand for me.” Koyama grins and taps his lips with his finger. “Shh, it’s super top secret.”   
  
“Our ninja has to be the most out there ninja ever,” Yamapi groans. “His work is a secret, and it’s meant to be a secret too that he’s a ninja—except everyone knows. I thought the point of being a ninja was that nobody knows you’re a ninja.”   
  
“First rule of ninja club,” Massu agrees with half a chicken in his mouth. “Don’t talk about ninja club.”   
  
Yamapi winces and throws a napkin at Massu. “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”   
  
Jin relaxes. Without the presence of the advisors it’s easy to relax, but he still can’t help but wonder what the Mercury Pirates are doing at this very moment.   
  
He can imagine Taguchi somewhere in the kitchens, taking over because pirates don’t know how to cook and they certainly don’t eat enough vegetables. Tatsuya would be somewhere in the lookout post, singing to himself and Cookie. Nakamaru would be probably healing anyone who dared enter the kitchen whilst Taguchi was in there holding a knife, and Koki—knowing the eternal joker—would be keeping everyone’s spirits up.   
  
It’s the thought of Kazuya that makes Jin a little blue with loneliness and longing. He can visualise the other quite clearly: Standing out on the ship with the wind rushing through his hair and an excessive amount of weapons strapped to his middle as he struts around barking orders like he has been ever since he inherited the ship.   
  
Jin feels a painful thud in his chest and drinks more alcohol to numb it. It doesn’t work, but he can almost convince himself it does.   
  
Yamapi places another glass and one look tells Jin he read him clearly. He smiles gratefully and takes the glass to clink with Yamapi’s.   
  
“Drink until the world goes black,” Yamapi advises him, followed by a happy cheer from the others.   
  
There are worse places to be exiled to.   
  
Jin starts spending the next month afterwards in a fixed routine and what he comes to terms with is the fact that Koyama’s advisors don’t trust Koyama. At all. What Koyama thought normal was not what Jin considered normal.   
  
Jin’s advisors had been trusting him to make decisions without their intervention ever since he turned eighteen. Koyama’s advisors still tell him everything he has to do and everything he has to say. Jin’s advisors never watched him so closely, but that was all Koyama’s advisors did.   
  
When Jin did have a say in the politics of Sunshine Realm, it was only very small things that wouldn’t interfere in whatever set plan the advisors already had. The highlight of Jin’s spectacular decision making was that one time he got to choose whether strawberries or grapes should be offered to the envoy from Kinki Island.   
  
He also realized that Koyama tended to send Tegoshi out a lot. When Tegoshi wasn’t hanging out with Massu on their mini island (no one wanted to know what happened on that island, including Koyama himself), then Tegoshi was out doing things for Koyama.   
  
Jin found out that the advisors were only aware of Tegoshi’s activities fifty percent of the time. The other fifty percent was when Tegoshi was doing something Koyama had asked him to do, but the advisors had not; and it gave Jin a small insight into the fact that, despite being watched and monitored so closely, Koyama was making moves on his own.   
  
Perhaps a little rebellion exists in all kings.   
  
In the second month, Koyama allows Jin to accompany Yamapi and Ryo in welcoming a royal visit onto the shores of Sunshine Bay. As ambassadors for Sunshine Bay, usually it is the job of Yamapi and Ryo to handle official business such as this. Before anyone can get to the king, they have to go through Yamapi and Ryo first.   
  
Jin has one of those in his kingdom. Officially, Nakamaru holds the title of ambassador and he usually does a fairly good job in diplomatically handling royal visits before they get to Jin.   
  
“It’s easy,” Yamapi explains as he leads Jin to the docks. “They land, we welcome them and lead them back to the kingdom. No royal visit or envoy may make their way alone from the docks to the castle. It’s just not done. Also considered rude by some other kingdoms.”   
  
“It’s a boring job full of smiling and bowing,” Ryo adds with a roll of his eyes. “But we’re the ambassadors, someone has to do it.”   
  
Jin smiles. He knows what this part of their job is, but he’s never actually been on this side before. Usually, he’d be in the castle waiting for them to arrive just like Koyama is now, but Koyama had managed to convince the advisors that it would be educational for Jin to see this side of how things worked.   
  
(That was the official excuse. The real reason was because Koyama knew Jin hated being in the throne room and wanted to escape wherever possible.)   
  
They reach the docks and, not for the first time, Jin can’t help but notice how all docks on all kingdoms look and smell the same. The same scent of sea salt with fish. He sees the ship approaching the dock and it’s a grand structure made of rich wood, painted white with shining ruby stones neatly and perfectly embedded into the wood.   
  
“Arashi,” Ryo mutters under his breath as they dock. “Always has to be pretty and shiny.”   
  
“And they call us the shiny island,” Yamapi mutters and it’s the first time Jin’s ever wondered how other islands see each other. He knows how he views other kingdoms, but he’s never taken into account how kings like Joshima or Koyama would view them.   
  
When the ship docks and the first few servants are let out, Jin watches Matsumoto Jun and Sakurai Sho exit first. The two official ambassadors to Arashi Island and one of the four in King Ohno’s court who are trusted with things like these.   
  
Jin sighs. He’s known them for awhile, just like he’s known everyone in the kingdoms related to the everlasting Peace Contract between all kingdoms. Arashi Island’s court has always had a somewhat shiny and spotless reputation, but that extended to the citizens as well. Especially the likes of Matsumoto and Ninomiya who, just like their King, could do no wrong.   
  
“Yamapi,” Matsumoto greets first as he steps off the gangway and bows to him. He moves to Ryo. “Ryo and…” he pauses, a look of confusion coming over his posh features when he notices Jin. “King of Pirates.”   
  
“Long story,” Jin waves his curiosity off and bows in return. “Nice to see you again.”   
  
“I trust you’re not too tired after your journey,” Yamapi responds professionally.   
  
Sakurai, who looks a little more tired than Matsumoto, shakes his head and smiles at them. “Not at all.”   
  
Jin notices the others coming off the ship. King Ohno is the first to step off, followed closely by Aiba Masaki and Ninomiya Kazunari. Together, the five of them actually make up Ohno’s main court and Jin has never seen a more close-knit group. It works well for them because Arashi Island is actually the only island that exists in perpetual peace and no crime.   
  
Jin isn’t quite sure how they pulled that off. It seems like the exact opposite of his island—where crime is expected and totally normal.   
  
“Dare I ask why you’re here, King of Pirates?” Ohno drawls as he approaches them. “Do I need to worry about having my stuff stolen?”   
  
“Not on Sunshine Bay,” Yamapi hurries to assure him with a charming smile. “Besides, Jin is here on other matters. He came to help us welcome you personally.”   
  
Jin smiles, but he knows damn well he wouldn’t be able to promise anything about not stealing shit if any other member of the Mercury Pirates had been here. Especially Kazuya, who can swipe things before anyone even notices he’d had his eye on it.   
  
Jin misses him so much it physically hurts.   
  
“Your rooms have been set up for the night,” Ryo continues as he starts leading them back to the castle. “King Koyama is eager to open negotiations for…”   
  
Jin tunes him out. He follows in step with Yamapi and Matsumoto beside him. A royal visit like this usually means a negotiation has to happen between the kings and, for once, that is not something Jin needs to learn from Koyama. One thing his advisors can seem to trust him on is his relations with other kingdoms and, aside from the comments that he is the King of Pirates and nobody should bring valuables onto his land unless they intend to lose it, he actually has solid relations with the other kingdoms. Including Arashi.   
  
“Jin.” Matsumoto nudges him and grins his signature smile. “Really, why are you here?”   
  
Jin shrugs. “Pissed off my advisors,” he admits. “I’m here to learn how to be a king.”   
  
Matsumoto looks confused for a moment but it’s to be expected. Matsumoto isn’t a King. Ohno is and, of all the members of Arashi, Ohno is the hardest one to understand. Jin mainly puts it down to the fact that Ohno is probably what a king is supposed to be. Mostly emotionless, robotic. He does everything his advisors tell him to do and doesn’t periodically go out on adventures with a bunch of pirates.   
  
Eventually, Matsumoto chuckles at Jin.   
  
Ryo and Yamapi gladly drop Arashi off to the courtroom and Jin doesn’t need to stay with Koyama for this part. Not only is this a part of ruling he does not need help with, but it also has nothing to do with him. Ohno is here because of something between Sunshine Bay and Arashi Island. Jin doesn’t need to be involved.   
  
So instead, he follows Ryo and Yamapi to the tavern where, after about two hours and an embarrassingly high amount of alcohol, his brain finally switches off ‘king’ mode and relaxes into something he’s far more comfortable with.   
  
After all, it’s very easy to relax when it’s Ryo and Yamapi he’s around.   
  
“This guy.” Ryo nudges Yamapi almost off his seat, his face red and as drunk as Jin. “When we were kids, did he ever tell you about the window incident?”   
  
“No!” Yamapi splutters. “Not that one!”   
  
“Tell me, tell me.” Jin leans in and helps Ryo keep Yamapi off him so he can tell the story. Jin grabs Yamapi’s arm and the other protests but Ryo continues happily.   
  
“So, we’re about ten and nine years old,” Ryo hiccups. “And Koyama’s off somewhere with Shige, probably with his tutors or something, and we had the job to look after the door.”   
  
“We were guarding!” Yamapi protests, trying to fight Jin off. “Not looking after a door.”   
  
“Whatever,” Ryo waves him off. “Anyway, we’re kids, so we’re actually just learning how to guard and this guy”—he pokes at Yamapi—“gets bored and wanders off. He says he’ll be back in ten minutes and leaves me there alone. So, I go and look for him and I find him standing on the windowsill—on the third floor—pissing out the window and down into the gardens.”   
  
“I couldn’t find the bathroom!” Yamapi kicks Ryo under the table. “And I was busting!”   
  
“The maids in the garden start screaming when this ‘water’ hits them,” Ryo laughs. “Servants start panicking because they don’t know where the leak is coming from and Koyama spent an hour calming down the cook because Pi pissed on her vegetable garden.”   
  
Jin can’t help but chuckle but he knows he’s done worse. He was the king of his realm and he’d still caused a lot of trouble, even when he was a child. He tries to imagine any other king, including Koyama, Ohno, or even Joshima, being the ones who caused trouble when they were kids and not tried to fix it; he can’t imagine any of them being like that.   
  
The advisors brought him here to learn from Koyama, but, more and more, the only thing Jin is learning is how different he is to Koyama—and to every other king he can think about.   
  
By about month three, Jin starts to gain a better understanding of what it is the advisors are after. Watching Koyama day in and day out makes him almost constantly question what he’d do himself in similar situations.   
  
As he and Koyama are kings, they’re both burdened with the same curse that comes with it. After all, kings are not completely human, nor are they completely robotic. They are robotic enough to take out most annoying human instincts. They are trained to listen, obey, and hear their advisors; to be the relatable, human mouthpiece for the public and for diplomatic relations with other kingdoms.   
  
Jin and Koyama perfectly fit this mold. For most intents and purposes, they can have quite the human reactions and emotions and, most of the time, they can be seen as completely human. But it’s in little things that Jin can do that Koyama can’t do.   
  
After all, Koyama can’t love like Jin can. Koyama doesn’t have an overcurious drive to see the rest of the world like Jin does. Koyama is a lot more obedient to his advisors than Jin is. However, Koyama feels other things and about three months in Jin starts to notice that Koyama’s reaction to frustration and sadness is different to how Jin reacts to it.   
  
When Jin is in a frustrating situation—such as advisors looking too close over his shoulder or arguments he cannot win—he responds with anger or escaping the situation to get drunk and deal with it in his own way.   
  
Koyama cries.   
  
A lot.   
  
Jin didn’t realise it, and of course he never had the opportunity to when all he ever saw of Koyama was diplomatic visits and the occasional yearly meeting, but now that he lives in the castle, it’s almost inevitable that one day he comes across a rare scene.   
  
He’d been running errands all morning. On the demand of Koyama’s advisors, Jin had been making himself useful by going around the kingdom and running errands, checking on certain people and picking up taxes. He’d felt a strange sort of aura coming off the advisors, but thought nothing of it until he returned and Koyama wasn’t in the throne room.   
  
Jin walks down the corridor a bit, looking for the King to tell him his main duties are over, when he hears a sniffle coming from the archivists room. The door is ajar and Jin peers inside to see Shige sitting at his small reading table with Koyama.   
  
Koyama is hunched over on his chair, a tall, mostly empty bottle of alcohol is between them and Shige keeps watching Koyama slightly over his glass. Jin notices the way Koyama’s shoulders shake and it takes him a moment to realise Koyama is crying.   
  
“I hate it,” Koyama sniffles, rubbing at his face with the back of his sleeve. “All the time, like a constant...buzz in my ear…”   
  
Shige fills Koyama’s glass up again and slowly slides it towards him.   
  
Koyama sculls the drink down immediately and slumps a little more in his chair. He rubs at his eyes and shakes his head. “Akanishi is lucky his advisors don’t watch him that much.”   
  
Shige silently refills Koyama’s glass and Jin leans against the doorframe, just hidden out of sight so he can watch the two of them.   
  
He watches as Koyama sniffles again and rubs at his face. “I’m sorry Shige,” he mumbles, sounding quite miserable as he gulps the next glass down “I do this every week, but….”   
  
“You know I don’t mind,” Shige reminds him gently. “I don’t keep all that alcohol in my room because I like drinking it alone.”   
  
Koyama grins, still tearful, and watches Shige pour him another glass. He leans his elbows on the table and sighs. “It hurts though. Them watching me all the time. Akanishi told me his even stopped telling him what to do when he was eighteen, what’s up with that?”   
  
“Advisors for every kingdom are different,” Shige says, sounding like he’s quoting from one of the millions of books he’s memorised. “The advisors on SMAP Island for instance—”   
  
“Shige.” Koyama reaches over and grabs his wrist. “I need my best friend, not my archivist right now.”   
  
Shige pauses and for a moment he almost looks like he doesn’t know how to be what Koyama needs, but then he sighs, drops his shoulders, pours another two glasses and drinks one himself. When he puts the glass down, he pats Koyama’s hand. “Okay,” he relents. “The advisors are assholes.”   
  
“Thank you!” Koyama sounds almost happy and relieved. He drinks his own glass and moves his chair closer to Shige’s side so he can sit beside him instead. “My advisors are assholes. What else are they?”   
  
“They”—Shige pours more drinks and hands a glass to Koyama, who’s slowly snuggling into his side—“they’re buttheads!”   
  
“Buttheads!” Koyama cheers, he clinks his glass with Shige’s and both of them drink. “More!”   
  
Shige pours more drinks and hands Koyama a new glass. “They’re...they’re idiots!”   
  
“Idiots!” Koyama chirps and swallows down his next glass. He slams it down on the table. “Another!”   
  
Jin’s eyebrow slowly rises as he watches the two. Insulting people doesn’t seem to come as naturally to Shige as it would to any member of the Mercury Pirates. He’s even seen Ryo tear a person down using only his words, but it seems to work perfectly for Koyama as the two of them get steadily drunker and drunker the more weak insults Shige spits out.   
  
Eventually Koyama’s head rests on Shige’s shoulder and Jin watches closely as Shige freezes, for just a moment, before relaxing and letting Koyama do as he wishes. Jin notices that Koyama is only looking for comfort, there’s nothing to do with love or anything like that in his actions. But it’s in Shige’s actions in the way he lets Koyama lean against him, the warmth that comes over his eyes. It’s in this Jin realises the way Shige feels for Koyama, yet Koyama cannot actually return the feeling because he is who he is.   
  
A King. Kings don’t love. Kings don’t feel.   
  
Shige brings his arm around Koyama’s back. He pats his shoulder and Koyama sniffles again but he looks like he’s better.   
  
Jin pulls away from the door to give them their privacy. He walks off towards his room and wonders, not for the first time, just how different he is.   
  
By the fourth month, it gets cold and starts snowing. Even for an island like Sunshine Bay—where the general image is a warm place where the sun always shines—it starts getting cold as white snow settles like a thick blanket, covering rooftops, trees, and littering the once green fields in almost blinding white.   
  
Jin starts sleeping with more blankets on his bed. His own kingdom is prone to cold snaps as well, even snow, but he never handles the cold very well. One night, he’s wrapped up in four blankets, a black beanie that covers the top of his head, a puffy black coat he borrowed from Koyama, thick track pants, and four pairs of socks suffocating his feet.   
  
He’s curled up in bed, nearly asleep when he feels something on his face. At first he thinks it’s just the cold and curls up a little more under the blankets when he feels it again. Something cold, brushing over his cheek.   
  
He cracks an eye open, ready to glare at whoever is making it hard to sleep, when he sees Kazuya’s amused face sitting right next to him.   
  
“Kazu?” he sits up right away.   
  
Kazuya is real. Sitting next to him on the bed, he’s dressed in a red top with a black vest and shorts. His weapons are still strapped to his waist, dagger in his boot and another hidden just under his sleeve. Jin spots the large coat draped over his open window and blinks. “How...how did you get here?”   
  
“Ninja.” Kazuya gestures to the window where Tegoshi pokes his head out and grins at them both.   
  
“Present from Koyama,” Tegoshi beams at him. “Enjoy!”   
  
He disappears and Jin turns back to look at Kazuya.   
  
It’s only been four months but Kazuya still looks as beautiful as ever. His hair is messy and a little windswept, the same warmth in his eyes hides the ruthless ability he has as a pirate. No one would think, with the way Kazuya can look at Jin, that he’s also the same person who can and will kill if necessary. He’s cold from the outside and Jin notices his boots are still on, he can’t help but grin because it’s just like Kazuya to not think twice about going onto a bed with his shoes still on.   
  
“God, I’ve missed you,” Jin breathes, leaning in to hug the pirate to himself.   
  
Kazuya’s arms come around him and he feels Kazuya kiss his head. He smells like a strange mix of his usual vanilla-like scent combined with moss from where he’d been scaling the side of the castle on his way up here and a familiar scent of smoke. Jin sticks his nose in Kazuya’s shoulder and breathes deep.   
  
“I’m only here one night,” Kazuya tells him. “Koyama’s advisors will notice if I stay any longer and the ship can’t be seen near the island.”   
  
“Stay,” Jin pleads, holding Kazuya a little tighter in his arms. “Please? I can hide you under my bed.”   
  
Kazuya laughs and it’s music to Jin’s ears. He hasn’t heard the other in too long, and it seems odd that it hurts this much to miss someone but he really did.   
  
“What? Like I’m some stray cat you’re not allowed to keep so you’re just gonna keep it under your bed?” Kazuya whacks his side and pushes until Jin’s lying down and Kazuya’s hovering over him. The grin on his face sends a wicked shiver down Jin’s back as Kazuya lies on top of him slowly and brings a hand up to brush Jin’s hair out of his face. The several (stolen) bracelets on his wrist tickle Jin’s cheek.   
  
“Would you come back every now and then?” Kazuya whispers. “Feed me biscuits like the little stowaway I am?”   
  
Jin keeps his hands at Kazuya’s waist but his breath is hitched and his heart is racing. Only Kazuya has this power over him. He swallows hard and nods. “You can be my little pet. I’ll bring you food during the day and bring you out at night.”   
  
Kazuya laughs, his hand drifting slowly down Jin’s face to his neck. “I want a collar,” he demands in a low voice, fingers trailing slowly past Jin’s shirt, down his chest and along his side. It makes Jin jump a little but he forces himself to stay still. The dark look in Kazuya’s eyes only promise good things if he stays still.   
  
“A collar,” Jin promises, his breath a little shallow as Kazuya’s hand trails lazily to his stomach. Jin forces himself to concentrate on Kazuya’s face but that’s just as distracting. “What colour?”   
  
Kazuya hums, the vibrations between their bodies hits Jin right in the groin and, given by the smirk on Kazuya’s face, the pirate is well aware of it too. Kazuya’s hand slowly circles Jin’s hip and Jin forces himself not to move an inch.   
  
“...Pink?” Jin suggests, knowing Kazuya will get him back for it.   
  
Kazuya’s eyes flash and Jin gets a split second warning before Kazuya’s cold hand slips under his pants and sends shockwaves that make Jin’s back arch immediately. Kazuya’s hand is so cold, but the attention is so achingly good that Jin can’t figure out which one to focus on first. His breath hitches and Kazuya’s laugh doesn’t make things any better.   
  
“I have missed this,” Kazuya admits quietly before he leans in to start kissing and biting at Jin’s neck. Underneath Jin’s pants, Kazuya’s hand starts moving laboriously, almost too lazily, and it’s just enough attention to keep Jin roped into him, but it’s also not enough.   
  
Jin brings his hands up to Kazuya’s face. He grabs the pirate by the locks of his hair and drags him back up so he can seal their lips together. Jin’s fingers make their way through Kazuya’s hair, feeling every soft lock as the other squirms on top of him. He swallows Kazuya’s moan and brings a hand down to tug impatiently at Kazuya’s shirt.   
  
Kazuya takes the hint, pulling back briefly so he can pull himself out of the vest and shirt. As he does so, one of the daggers strapped to his side pokes Jin’s hip and Jin yelps underneath him.   
  
“Kazu,” he whines. “Do you have to go to bed with all those knives?”   
  
Kazuya laughs and pulls at the dagger that was hidden under his sleeve and is now exposed on his upper arm. The way his fingers dexterously handle a blade gives away how long he’s been holding and wielding weapons. Jin doesn’t feel even the least bit nervous that Kazuya will accidentally drop it and stab him, he knows the pirate won’t.   
  
Then, without even looking at the window, Kazuya flings the dagger back and it stabs the windowsill, embedding itself into the wood and causing a familiar shriek on the other side.   
  
Jin groans. “Tegoshi, get out!”   
  
Tegoshi’s laughter fades away as he climbs back down the outside of the castle and Jin turns his attention back to Kazuya who is also grinning. Kazuya rids himself of his weapons first. Daggers, swords, and stars fall to the floor with his shirt before he reaches for Jin’s shirt and pulls it over his head.   
  
The second he does, Kazuya leans down and starts kissing and trailing his tongue and lips along Jin’s chest. The feeling is so warm and good that Jin doesn’t even worry that Tegoshi might still be hanging outside the window listening in on them again.   
  
It’s not fair, he wants to touch and kiss Kazuya as much as he can in the short time he has him and yet every move Kazuya makes, every kiss he lays on Jin’s chest, makes the King helplessly weak underneath him.   
  
Kazuya doesn’t waste time. His kisses trail down Jin’s stomach, climbing down until he pulls the blanket well over his head and disappears. Jin feels his mouth right where he needs it and groans as he reaches a hand under the blanket to grab Kazuya’s hair. His back arches underneath him and the blanket is almost too much. He’d almost forgotten how good Kazuya was at this.   
  
One would think, after spending a lifetime being told how to be a king and after months of watching Koyama be an example, that Jin would feel somewhat guilty that he is able to do this but he doesn’t. As waves of pleasure only Jin can feel shoot through his body, this feels incredibly right to him.   
  
Kazuya climbs back up when Jin is breathless and hanging onto the edge with his fingertips. The pirate nuzzles his nose against Jin’s and leans down to kiss along his neck whilst he waits for Jin’s body to calm down.   
  
Jin can’t believe how much he’s missed him.   
  
He grabs the pirate and rolls them over, pressing Kazuya down into the sheets as he kisses along his neck, down his shoulder and down his chest. He feels Kazuya’s fingers in his hair and hums. Kazuya missed him too.   
  
“Don’t think I’m letting you take over just because we’ve been apart for so long,” Kazuya laughs and Jin almost contemplates taking full control just for that comment alone, but he doesn’t get the chance.   
  
He sees something flash in Kazuya’s eyes before he is pressed back down on the mattress and Kazuya takes his lips again, hard and fast. Kazuya robs him of every single ounce of power that Jin has no choice but to give in and let the pirate take as he’s always done. He feels Kazuya’s hand before he even realises the other had wet his fingers and jolts a little as Kazuya stretches him. It has been awhile.   
  
Kazuya’s lips and teeth leave marks on Jin’s neck as he feels the other everywhere, hears his breathing (or is that his own? He can’t tell anymore), and even Kazuya’s scent invades all Jin’s senses. He’s so distracted that when Kazuya finally pushes in, Jin hadn’t seen it coming and his breath is knocked out of his lungs for a second or two.   
  
Jin looks up. Kazuya is so beautiful on top of him. His hair is hanging down and there’s an undeniable shade of pure want in his eyes. Kazuya may have been younger and even physically smaller than Jin, but he was always stronger when it came to sheer willpower. With his short temper, his forceful and almost demanding nature, how could Jin not fall in love with him?   
  
The pirate starts moving and Jin hangs on. Kazuya is gentle at first, but when he figures out that Jin is just barely staying sane he starts taking what he can, fast and relentless. He plugs Jin’s moans with his mouth to ensure the guards outside don’t hear what’s happening and all Jin can do is hold onto him. Every thrust, every kiss, every scratch of Kazuya’s blunt fingernails, makes Jin’s senses soar until he can’t tell what’s up and what’s down anymore.   
  
“Kazu,” Jin pleads. He’s sweating, his hair is splayed on the pillow and he can’t handle much more of this, his body is about to give in. It’s not until he opens his eyes and looks up that he realises Kazuya can’t take much more either, he’s at his limit too.   
  
Jin leans up and takes his lips, he steals his breath and feels Kazuya lose it first in his arms. The pirate moans into his mouth, his entire body spasming for a moment and Jin lets himself follow. For a moment, the feeling is just too good. He can’t focus on anything but how amazing it is that he can feel this good and how right it feels for Kazuya to be in his arms.   
  
They sink into the mattress, both gasping for breath. Kazuya is too tired to get off Jin so he just kind of lies there, his face in Jin’s neck and his sweaty, sticky body plastered to Jin’s.   
  
After about ten minutes of breathing, Kazuya finally pulls out. Jin shivers and watches as the pirate captain rolls off him and lies down next to him instead. They’re sweaty, sticky and it’s pretty disgusting, but Jin finds himself unable to care. Something about this always felt natural to him.   
  
“You’ll come back,” Kazuya breathes and turns his head to look at Jin. “Come back, be a good king for the advisors and then you’ll be back with us. It’ll be just like before.”   
  
Jin nods. He doesn’t have a choice but to be obedient. Just like Koyama. Just like Ohno. Just like every single other king, Jin must be obedient and do as he’s told. If they’d told him to learn to be more like a king, then he has no choice but to do so. Or at least pretend that six months out in Sunshine Bay had been useful in some way.   
  
He hadn’t really been learning how to emulate Koyama, but he had been learning that the way Sunshine Bay functioned and the inner relationships in the court were wildly different to his own. He’d learnt that Koyama’s own advisors were a lot more intense than Jin’s. But the only thing he’d really learnt with regards to what his advisors wanted, was that they wanted his obedience.   
  
Kazuya rolls over in bed and leans over him. He brushes his hair back from his face and leans down to kiss Jin’s forehead.   
  
“You’ll always be one of the Mercury Pirates,” Kazuya promises, his voice gentle but there’s a firm resolve in it. Jin is not to doubt him.   
  
They snuggle on the bed. After awhile, Jin starts feeling antsy and the reality that Kazuya has to go in the morning makes him hold onto the pirate captain, kiss his jaw and eventually pull Kazuya over him so he can take him again. He spends the whole night doing everything a king shouldn’t be physically capable of doing before the morning light finally dawns and Jin hears the first chirps of the birds outside.   
  
He clings to Kazuya. They’d had sex twice more and Jin is exhausted, so is Kazuya, but they can’t stop touching each other. There may be only a little while longer until they’re reunited again but it’s still longer than either of them can bear.   
  
There’s a noise at the window and Tegoshi pokes his head into the room.   
  
“Kamenashi,” he calls quietly. “Time to go.”   
  
Kazuya makes a move and Jin clings. He tightens his arms around the pirate captain and pulls him in.   
  
“Don’t go,” Jin pleads, burying his face in Kazuya’s shoulder as he uses his leg to pin the other down onto the bed as well. He wraps around him like a koala and holds on tight.   
  
“Kame,” Tegoshi hisses and Kazuya holds up a hand to tell him to wait.   
  
Kazuya pulls Jin’s face up and kisses his forehead, his nose, and finally his lips. Jin doesn’t want to let him go but he knows he has to.   
  
“You will be back with us soon,” Kazuya promises him again. “Just do everything they tell you to do. Don’t give them any reason to be suspicious and you will be back with us. It’ll be like it always was.”   
  
Jin shakes his head. This isn’t fair. He’d been obedient, he hadn’t been disobeying anyone before they sent him away. He doesn’t get what they want from him when there’s no way they can compare his kingdom to that of Arashi or Sunshine Bay. They’re totally different and Jin is totally different from any other king. How can they expect him to be like everyone else when he was born to be different?   
  
Kazuya kisses his forehead again and Jin reluctantly lets him go. He watches Kazuya pull his clothes back on, re-arm himself with his blades and hidden knives. Jin gets up and wraps a blanket around himself. He follows Kazuya to the window where Tegoshi is waiting and pulls the pirate into one more kiss.   
  
Tegoshi starts climbing down and there’s a shine in Kazuya’s eyes that reveals it’s just as hard for him to leave as it is for Jin to let him go.   
  
“Bye,” the pirate breathes as he climbs over the windowsill and starts climbing down with Tegoshi. Jin leans over and watches them until they reach the ground and disappear into the woods.   
  
Jin returns to the bed and slumps into the sheets. He can still smell Kazuya’s lingering scent in the pillows. He knows what he has to do, he has to be a puppet. He has to be the obedient king who does everything the advisors say. But the thing is, he still doesn’t know where he’d gone wrong to begin with or what exactly the advisors want from him.   
  
Did they want him to come back and be Akanishi Jin? Or did they want him to come back a clone of Koyama Keiichiro? At this point, Jin can’t really tell and all he can hope is that when he does come back they won’t be disappointed by what they see.   
  
\-   
  
Despite Jin’s concerns, the remaining two months go fast. He settles into a routine of staying by Koyama’s side, spending his free time playing around with Yamapi and Ryo, being obedient in front of the advisors, and doing everything he was supposed to do. Kazuya’s visit had not made Jin gloomy, if anything, it had just made his resolve to succeed stronger.   
  
On his final night with the Sunshine Bay group, Koyama receives special permission to arrange a celebration party in the court. He decks the ballroom out with the prettiest, sparkliest streamers, balloons, and even glitter. There are cupcakes with rainbow pictures, dishes from all corners of the island, and people Jin’s never even met thanking him for spending his time with them.   
  
There’s music and lights and the entire ballroom is so light and festive that is so very typical of Sunshine Bay. Jin can’t help but think, with a fond smile, that a party in his island would never be like this one.   
  
“Jin”—Masuda claps his hand on Jin’s shoulder and steers him towards the food—“I made everything, eat to your heart’s content.”   
  
Jin vows silently in his mind not to eat anything tonight. Not after what happened last time.   
  
Yamapi comes for him before long and Ryo pushes a drink into his hand. Sunshine Bay doesn’t hit the alcohol as hard as any of the Mercury Pirates would, but for tonight they do. It’s to celebrate Jin and everything he stands for. Apparently he, as the King of Pirates, stands for getting really, really drunk, turning the music up loud enough to go deaf, and dancing until the moon is high up in the sky.   
  
Everyone is in such high spirits. Everyone is high and happy and just having fun and cutting loose that the final night goes by in a flash of alcohol and lights. Ryo gets really wasted at some point in the night and keeps dropping unsubtle hints to Jin about sending Ueda over to him when he gets back to his own island. Yamapi loses his pants at one point and Tegoshi starts dirty dancing against him.   
  
Then, when it’s all over and half the court are either passed out or miraculously still going as the sun comes up, Koyama leads Jin away to his quiet room and sits him down.   
  
Jin’s kind of drunk. He’d managed to resist drinking as much as Ryo had but he still is pretty drunk. Koyama’s bedroom spins as he sits down on the bed and accepts the water that Koyama gives him.   
  
“Why aren’t you drunk?” he asks, blinking at the other king with one eye.   
  
Koyama smiles, he’s dressed in white and he’s amazingly sober. He sits down next to Jin and shrugs. “Tonight was about you,” he points out. “I just wanted to make sure you had fun.”   
  
Jin is kind of amazed but he really did. He’s even going to kind of miss it here.   
  
Some parts anyway. He’s not going to miss the constant staring of the advisors.   
  
“There is a ship arranged to take you back this afternoon. That will give you the morning to rest and get yourself ready,” Koyama tells him. “There’s just something I had to tell you while I still had the chance.”   
  
Jin blinks at him. “Couldn’t you tell me when I was still sober?”   
  
Koyama laughs and shakes his head. He grabs Jin’s shoulder and leans in. “I will ensure my advisors tell yours that you behaved admirably. That I believe, with all my heart, you are a capable and willing king. You will serve your realm and advisors with the honour and dignity of any king before you ever has.”   
  
Jin stares and Koyama’s face grows serious. “But I need you to be careful, Jin. In the six months you’ve been here, my advisors have been watching you and they’ve noticed the difference between you and me. There has never been a case of a king who is not fit to be a king, so I need you to be very, very careful. If you aren’t, you may be the first.”   
  
There’s a seriousness in his tone but also immense worry. Jin shakes his head. “There is no law to pull a king off his throne,” he points out. “It’s never happened before.”   
  
“If the advisors had the power to make you come here for six months, they may give themselves the power to take you away permanently if they don’t like what they’re seeing,” Koyama points out. “Be very, very careful. We may be kings, but the advisors are the real lords of the realms.”   
  
A fact Jin knows only too well.   
  
He eventually bids Koyama goodnight and stumbles over to his room. He flops onto his bed and listens to the early morning birds chirping outside. It feels somehow wrong to hear them when he’s been up all night.   
  
He curls up and tries to sleep, but Koyama’s warning worries him. He’s right. If the advisors could take him away for six months, there’s nothing to stop them from taking him out permanently if they don’t like what they see.   
  
Jin has to obey.   
  
It’s what kings do and although there has never ever been a king who has been taken out by his own advisors that doesn’t mean that Jin can’t be the first.   
  
He closes his eyes and wills sleep to come to him.   
  
It doesn’t.   
  
\-   
  
Jin settles back in his kingdom. This time because of his excursion, he’s told to stay in the kingdom a lot longer than two weeks in order to sort things out. He’s about one week in when the advisors start whispering in his ear.   
  
“A new mini-island has been brought to our attention,” they whisper in unison. “Kamepi Island. The co-owners are Yamashita Tomohisa from Sunshine Bay and Kamenashi Kazuya of the Mercury Pirates.”   
  
Jin frowns. Kazuya never mentioned owning a mini-island. Of course, by rights, he didn’t have to. Mini-islands aren’t big enough to be kingdoms. They’re literally just a tiny spit of land where people can rest and do whatever. Most of the time, they’re isolated and abandoned islands but people are allowed to own them.   
  
Still, Kazuya with Yamapi? Why wouldn’t he mention that?   
  
He holds his questions in until the advisors tell him he can go. Jin makes his way straight to the tavern and spots Kazuya sitting with the rest of the crew—drinking of course. When are they not drinking?   
  
“Can I have a word?” Jin asks as he approaches the table.   
  
“It’s our esteemed lord!” Taguchi shouts gleefully. He’s half-past drunk and leaning on Tatsuya, who looks annoyed but allows it.   
  
“Drink the water, Taguchi,” Koki advises as Nakamaru passes him the water and takes his alcohol away.   
  
Kazuya gets up, nodding to the stairs and Jin follows until they go upstairs to one of the private rooms. Jin closes the door behind himself and takes a deep breath. He can’t assume the worst but he also can’t help it. Kazuya owns an island with Yamapi and he hasn’t told him. Jin wasn’t even aware there was anything between Yamapi and Kazuya other than a slight bit of hostility thanks to Kazuya’s grabby hands always nicking Yamapi’s things. To find out they own an island, well, the worst scenarios are turning up in Jin’s head and he needs answers.   
  
“What’s going on?” Kazuya asks, clearly noticing the look on Jin’s face. “Jin?”   
  
“When were you going to tell me you own a mini-island?” Jin asks, his voice a lot more accusing than he wants it to be. He wants to think the best and avoid assuming the worst, but he can’t help it. He hasn’t ever been jealous before (and kings aren’t supposed to feel such an emotion) but Jin doesn’t know how to deal with it.   
  
Kazuya’s eyes widen and Jin thinks the worst right away. He shakes his head. “Right, so this thing between you and Yamapi, it’s more than I think it is? How long?”   
  
“Jin, you’ve got it wrong,” Kazuya says, his hands raised in slight defence. “You don’t know the—”   
  
“How long?!” Jin suddenly shouts. He can’t take it. Images begin forming in his mind and most of them involve Kazuya fooling around with Yamapi.   
  
“Jin!” Kazuya snaps and Jin blinks at him. The younger puts his hands on Jin’s shoulders and leans in. “I’ve been a co-owner of that island since before you became a pirate. Now, will you let me explain?”   
  
“Explain quickly,” Jin says, he still doesn’t quite trust what his mind is seeing. “Before I assume the worst.”   
  
“Given the way you just snapped at me, you’re already assuming the worst.” Kazuya scowls at him and shakes his head. “Look, it was before you became a pirate and after my dad died. I was suddenly the pirate captain and sometimes the responsibilities got…” He struggles for a moment to think of the right words and sighs tiredly. “I was exhausted and wanted to be away from everyone.”   
  
That hurts a little. Jin flinches. “Even me?”   
  
“Jin, things were different then,” Kazuya tells him. “I needed a place to be alone and I just happened to find Yamapi—who needed that too. Neither of us could afford a mini-island on our own, so we share one.”   
  
Jin blinks at him. He frowns. “Why did Yamapi need a place to be alone?”   
  
“He didn’t say and I didn’t ask,” Kazuya tells him firmly. “I haven’t even been to that island since you joined us. I haven’t needed to.”   
  
Jin still feels uneasy and Kazuya reaches a hand up to cup his face. He meets his eyes and frowns when he sees that Jin is not entirely convinced.   
  
“Do you not trust me?” he asks quietly and it hurts because Jin does trust him. He just hasn’t been jealous before, not like this.   
  
“I do,” Jin mumbles quietly. “I just…”   
  
“There is nothing going on between me and Yamapi,” Kazuya assures him, his voice firm and steady. “Absolutely nothing.”   
  
Jin nods and Kazuya leans in. “I can take you there if you like?” he offered. “It’s not much of an island. I just needed somewhere to be alone and I hardly use it.”   
  
Jin takes a deep breath. He trusts Kazuya. He has to show it too by not prying too deeply into this. He shakes his head and wraps an arm around Kazuya’s middle. “I trust you,” he mumbles. “If you say there’s nothing going on, then there’s nothing going on. I don’t want to take away your spot to hide in if that’s what you needed it for.”   
  
“It is,” Kazuya assures him. “And again, I don’t use it these days. I have somewhere I’d rather be.”   
  
Confused, Jin blinks at him. “...Where?”   
  
Kazuya whacks his side and laughs. “Right here, you idiot.”   
  
Jin smiles and Kazuya pulls him into a strong hug. Jin likes the way he feels against him, he likes the way he smells and sinks into him easily.   
  
“Idiot,” Kazuya’s voice is warm and light. “I’m not leaving you anytime soon.”   
  
\-   
  
At the end of every year, a festival is held on neutral ground. Named the ‘Countdown Festival,’ it’s the rare time when kings and royalty from almost every single kingdom gather and meet on a neutral island to host a festival. It’s a long night of singing, dancing, mingling, and peaceful social interaction for another year of prosperity.   
  
Another year of peace between kingdoms—of avoiding war and death. Of maintaining the peace that has been between all of their kingdoms for generations and generations.   
  
The year Jin turns twenty-three, the neutral island hosting the festival is Tabula. It’s kind of perfect, because as an island it holds no loyalties or biases to any particular kingdom. It also has a large theatre where the kingdoms can hold their event and still have plenty of rooms available for them to sleep. It’s one of the very rare times that kings from all over the world will find themselves in the same hotel.   
  
When Jin was younger, he used to look forward to these festivals. He’d always be flanked by his advisors, but it was fun and fascinating seeing older kingdoms work and learning off the wisdom of men who had been kings long before he was even created.   
  
This year, Jin appears on Tabula Island with the Mercury Pirates and a small handful of his advisors. It’s tradition that every king appears with his advisors, and the faceless beings look the same no matter their origin. The advisors from Kanjani are just as dark and faceless as Jin’s. All the advisors gather in their own quarters, allowing for their kings and their entourages to take up their own spaces in the hotel. Jin and the Mercury Pirates— to the surprise of no one—take up an entire floor by themselves.   
  
This is not the first time the Mercury Pirates have appeared at the countdown festival, but Jin still feels the need to remind them of the rules every time. It’s not unheard of that someone breaks it.   
  
“So,” Jin says when he sets his things down and looks over his crew. “You know the routine. There’s the entrance ceremony—”   
  
“In which every kingdom is introduced to the hall,” Koki adds helpfully.   
  
“Then after that there’s some mingling,” Jin carries on. “They encourage everyone to mingle, to get lost within other kingdoms. The more we know about each other the better.”   
  
“Yes, but you have your favourites,” Kazuya smirks.   
  
“Yamapi and Nishikido,” Tatsuya says, covered with an over exaggerated sneeze.   
  
“That’s a bit rich coming from you,” Taguchi points out blandly.   
  
Tatsuya sighs and looks at him. “We fuck. That’s it.”   
  
“Charming,” Nakamaru sighs.   
  
“Anyway,” Jin continues louder than before, raising his voice in an effort to get their attention. “After that are the performances and that’s when the kingdoms showcase their culture to the world through song and dance.”   
  
“Not to mention this is a great way to gather money for the kingdoms because of all the people who travel here to see the kings and performances,” Nakamaru adds slyly. “Where does all that money go to?”   
  
“It goes to the next annual festival,” Jin says. “There’s a system for all of this and it makes kings more popular when their own villagers can see them out and having a good time just like them. Makes them more relatable. At least that’s what the advisors say.”   
  
He pretends he didn’t see Kazuya flinch at the mention of them and sighs. “Anyway guys, go out there, have fun, and mingle with as many people as you like. Tonight is about celebrating another peaceful year and entering a new one.”   
  
“Do you know anything about the performances?” Kazuya asks curiously. “Who’s coming out to sing on your kingdom’s behalf?”   
  
“I usually don’t get told about that stuff,” Jin admits. “I’m always curious, but it’s just as much a surprise to me as it is to everyone else.”   
  
Kazuya smiles and Jin looks up as the clock ticks 11 p.m. He smiles at his crew and turns to the door. “Let’s go then.”   
  
The building they’re located in has twenty-seven floors. The upper floors are the hotel rooms, specially reserved for the kingdoms. Down on the lower floors are the kitchen and staff rooms, but the main attraction is the great hall on the ground floor and that’s where the event takes place. The great hall is an enormous room, decked and decorated in the most elaborate, multi-coloured and glittering stringers lined across the walls. Glitter is littered all over the wooden floors and the stage is set, prepared, and ready for a night of entertainment and good-hearted fun.   
  
Music is already playing as Jin is announced and enters the room. The feeling of thousands of eyes on his form used to be quite disconcerting, but is now something he actually gets used to as he makes his way into the hall. He is quickly found by Yamapi and Ryo, both of them had come in with Koyama.   
  
“The King of Pirates himself arrives!” Ryo chirps happily as he claps a rough hand on Jin’s shoulder.   
  
Yamapi hands him a drink and leans in. “Taste the grape stuff. They’ve been handing it out from Arashi Islands, it’s unbelievable.”   
  
“Everything from Arashi Islands is cased in gold,” Ryo snorts as they steer Jin deeper into the room. “It’s Matsumoto. The master of ale wouldn’t let their drinks be second best.”   
  
Jin thinks about the alcohol his pirates had brought in, most of which had been stolen from other islands.   
  
It’s easy to get lost when the kingdoms are gathered like this. Jin had lost his pirate crew the second he walked into the room and he just barely manages to spot Tatsuya talking to Koyama somewhere near the eastern side of the hall. Kazuya has disappeared completely and god knows where the others are.   
  
“I heard you and your pirates sailed to Vena recently,” Yamapi continues. “What was it like?”   
  
“It wasn’t bad,” Jin shrugs. They’d sailed to Vena and Kazuya had had more than one reservation about going back to the very island that had killed his father. Their official stance on the matter had been that they’d travelled to Vena looking for an elusive fruit. At least that was what they’d told Jin’s advisors.   
  
The real reason had been that Jin had wanted to find out what had happened to Kazuya’s father and confirm if this was part of any ‘unrest’ that Koyama had been so concerned about.   
  
To his relief and frustration, he’d found nothing.   
  
“Wasn’t bad?” Ryo snorts as they find themselves some seats. “I heard that in Vena, the oceans are purple and the skies are green. Is that true?”   
  
“In the daytime, yes,” Jin confirms. “But at night they look like anything else. Vena mostly smells funny.”   
  
“It’s the fruit, I’ll bet,” Yamapi huffs and sits down next to Jin in the plush red seats the royalty have reserved for them. “Our traders sometimes bring in stuff from Vena and there’s this one fruit they bring in—apparently, it’s really good for you. It’s a super fruit but it smells like a corpse.”   
  
“Subaru loves that stuff,” Ryo wrinkles his nose in disgust. “The rest of us threatened to abandon him on an island if he so much as ate that shit inside.”   
  
“I envy you, man,” Ryo says, leaning back in his seat with his feet propped up on the seat in front of him. “Travelling with pirates all the time, no other king does that.”   
  
Ryo’s foot whacks Masuda sitting in front of him and Yamapi reaches over to pull his legs down before Masuda turns around to hit him back.   
  
“Because being a _switch_ is so boring,” Jin shoots back with a smirk.   
  
He spots Subaru a couple of rows behind them, engaged in a serious talk with Imai Tsubasa about something and Jin turns back to Ryo. Ryo’s dressed in blue.   
  
“Is your other body here?” he can’t help but ask.   
  
Ryo nods. “It’s in the Kanjani quarters. Dressed in Kanjani colours just in case I need to do stuff on their side. Not likely, but you never know.”   
  
The hall fills up fast and, true to Countdown form, kingdoms start mixing and mingling with each other easily. The room slowly starts to look more like a rainbow with people wearing all sorts of different colours that seem to blend together into one harmonious setting. The hall itself is organised like an auditorium. At the front is the stage with the first ten rows of plush velvet seats reserved for royalty and their entourage. The rows of seats behind that is for everyone else who bought and paid their way in here to celebrate the end of the year with royalty.   
  
It’s a big event. It gathers money for everyone and guarantees people a good night out with plenty of alcohol, food, and entertainment to keep the party going all night. From a business perspective, it’s very easy to see why the advisors consented to this.   
  
When the last kingdom is announced and the lights begin to dim, people rush to take their seats as the performances begin.   
  
When it comes to performances, there’s sort of no real rules. Anyone can perform if they want to. From royalty themselves to a member of their entourage, the entire thing is open to anyone who can and wishes to grace the stage. The songs always come from their own kingdoms, folk songs well known to the villagers or an ode representing their kings in a good light. This year, Jin is pleasantly taken aback when the first performance consists of nine boys he’s never seen before.   
  
“It’s that new island,” Yamapi says as the song starts up and the nine of them rush onstage with the combined energy of excited children. “Hey something.”   
  
“Heisei, isn’t it?” Ryo frowns but his foot is tapping to the music. However loud and poppy it is, it’s annoyingly catchy.   
  
Jin spots the tallest one in the middle. He’s this tall, lanky teenager with dyed light brown locks and the gentlest eyes. He has an awkward smile and he’s all limbs and awkward tallness but Jin recognises him right away.   
  
“Kota!” he whispers.   
  
They’re so sickeningly cutesy and sparkly with their multi-coloured sparkles and ruffles. They dance all over the stage and seem to just exert endless energy. It’s actually exhausting watching them but Jin can’t help it. His eyes follow Kota and he’s changed so much. He looks nothing like the boy Jin had left on Kinki Island. He’s older and smiles so easily.   
  
Aside from Kota, Jin’s eyes can’t help but notice one boy who looks like he should still be in elementary school, and another who looks so pretty he might actually be a girl.   
  
Their performance, although pretty, sparkly, and way too cute, somehow keeps Jin’s interest because of Kota—they lose Ryo fast as he leans back in his seat and covers his face with his hand. Yamapi settles for a polite smile on his face, but Jin can see quite well that this isn’t his style either. The older kings are already long gone and Jin spots Koki trying to understand what it is he’s seeing.   
  
They’re gone after two songs and Jin makes a note to track down Kota later. He’s dying to find out what happened to him after he’d left him with the Domoto Kings and he wonders if they had a hand in where Kota is now.   
  
The next act on the stage is one everyone recognises and a song everyone knows by heart. It’s better than the cutesy songs they’d seen before and Ryo relaxes as he sings along to ‘ _Andalucia ni Akogarete_ ’ instead.   
  
“Matchy, Matchy,” Yamapi mutters under his breath. “Every single year.”   
  
“That and ‘ _Garasu no Shounen_ ,’” Jin adds quietly as he checks to make sure neither of the Domoto Kings are within hearing distance.   
  
They get through about five songs, the most memorable of which is from Arashi and only because they showed up in shower curtains. Jin had a really hard time keeping in his laughter when Ryo was bent over, losing it in his knees, and Yamapi was hiding his face in Jin’s shoulder.   
  
They’ve only just barely recovered when the stage turns a shade of majestic purple and a traditional intro begins. Pink sakura petals start showering down from the ceiling and Jin looks up when the lights focus on a single person on the stage. His thin body is covered in an elaborate and beautiful kimono, and his face hidden behind a white mask with horns.   
  
He moves like water, getting up and gliding across the stage with a fan in his hand. He twirls with the sakura petals and now he has Ryo’s and Yamapi’s attention as well. Jin feels a nag in the back of his head until the performer removes his mask and his face is revealed to the audience.   
  
“Isn’t that your pirate captain?” Yamapi mutters. Ryo whistles.   
  
Jin just stares. Kazuya has his hair up, locks and tresses glide over his cheeks and it’s the most feminine he’s ever seen him, but at the same time it’s undeniably beautiful. He checks the audience, making sure his other crew members weren’t in on this and that they’re just as surprised. He spots Koki a couple of rows down looking just as stunned as he feels, but Tatsuya and Taguchi have disappeared and Nakamaru sits a few rows behind Jin looking intrigued but not entirely surprised.   
  
“Shh,” Kazuya hushes them, his fingers over his lips as the music begins.   
  
Jin spots Tatsuya and Taguchi backing him up and watches Kazuya glide around the stage with ease. It’s a theatrical performance, but it’s also the first time Jin has ever heard Kazuya sing. He didn’t even know the boy could until tonight and he wonders if there’s even anything Kazuya can’t do.   
  
He catches Kazuya’s gaze mid-performance and the pirate captain smirks at him. Jin feels a violent shiver shoot down his spine.   
  
He has a funny feeling he hasn’t even seen half of the things Kazuya’s capable of and the realisation of this is both exciting and absolutely terrifying.   
  
The stage is set up to accommodate for a lot more than a static performance of just standing and singing. Kazuya takes full advantage of the waterworks and the wires as he flies out to the audience area. His body soars right above Jin’s head and Jin follows every move he makes. He’s so beautiful, so stunning, that Jin can’t help but feel entirely helpless watching him.   
  
Then, when it’s over, Jin releases a breath he hadn’t realised he’d even been holding.   
  
“Nice,” Ryo comments and it’s rare praise from him. He’s hard to impress.   
  
Yamapi just claps and glances at Jin. Jin sort of hates the way Yamapi looks so knowing, like he knows what Jin’s going to do when he gets Kazuya within his grasp again. It’s supposed to be a secret, but it’s the worst kept secret considering how many people know about it.   
  
“Shut up,” Jin mutters, sinking into his chair.   
  
“I said nothing,” Yamapi laughs and glances at the silent advisors blocking the back of the hall. He pats Jin’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, nobody knows.”   
  
But Yamapi does. At least Jin knows he can trust him.   
  
The performances that follow Kazuya’s fall woefully short of impressing everyone and it’s kind of a given that he was the highlight. When they’re allowed to get up again, Jin looks around for a crewmember and grabs Tatsuya first.   
  
“How long have you been planning that?” he asks the rabbit as he’s on his way to get a drink.   
  
“A while,” Tatsuya answers with a hidden smirk. He grabs a glass from the refreshments table and turns to Jin. “He wanted to surprise you.”   
  
“Mission accomplished. I was surprised,” Jin mutters and looks around, but the hall is so crowded he can’t find anyone else.   
  
Tatsuya moves to walk away and Jin grabs the hem of his shirt. He follows Tatsuya through the crowd until Tatsuya finds Taguchi and hands him the rest of his drink.   
  
“Grape,” Tatsuya tells him with a small wince of disgust. “Bit too sweet for me.”   
  
“ _Aww_ , thanks, Uepi,” Taguchi grins. He doesn’t even seem to mind that Tatsuya had already drunk at least two sips of it. He turns to Jin and his grin grows wider. “Like the performance?”   
  
“Yes, you sneaky bastards,” Jin can’t help but smile. He liked it, he’s not a big fan of surprises but he’d liked it. “Where’s Kame?”   
  
“Somewhere around here,” Taguchi says most unhelpfully as he takes a sip of the drink. “Might not be a good idea to find him anyway. The advisors are watching.”   
  
It’s not just Jin’s advisors either. All the advisors are watching from where they’re lined up against the back of the hall. They’re like a big black line that streaks across the hall, an ominous cloud in an otherwise festive hall. Everyone just tries to ignore them. It’s easier for some than others.   
  
Koki appears, grabbing Jin’s shoulder with a relieved grin. “Jeez,” he says. “It’s impossible to find anyone in this crowd.”   
  
“You found us, didn’t you?” Taguchi points out.   
  
“Yeah, I found you. After I find everyone from Kanjani, Arashi, and Kinki,” Koki huffs. “I didn’t exactly want to run into the Domoto Kings again.”   
  
Jin spots Kota not too far away and his eyes widen. He turns to his crew. “I’ll be back,” he promises before ducking again into the crowd. It works for him that he’s a little taller so he can keep Kota in his sight whilst he swims through people.   
  
When he reaches the boy, he pats Kota’s shoulder. The teenager turns around and he’s grown so much from the last time Jin saw him, but his eyes are still the same. Large, curious, dark eyes light up when they recognise Jin.   
  
“You!” Kota beams brightly. “You’re...Akanishi, right?”   
  
“Kota, it’s so good to see you again!” Jin can’t help exclaiming as he holds Kota’s arm. “Last time I saw you—”   
  
“I remember.” Kota’s smile is as bright as the sun and it’s so good to see him happier than he was last time.   
  
Jin shakes his head. “What happened? I was really worried leaving you with the Domoto Kings, but I didn’t have a choice. Were they good to you?”   
  
Kota nods happily. “They kept me for a little while, and then word came around that my partner from my home island was found so they took me to him.”   
  
Kota gestures to a boy nearby. Jin had seen him dancing with Kota before. He approaches them and he’s a little shorter than Kota with lighter hair, darker skin, and a little more muscle.   
  
“Akanishi, this is Yaotome Hikaru,” Kota introduces them. He turns to his friend. “Hikaru, this is Akanishi Jin.”   
  
“The King of Pirates,” Hikaru raises an impressed eyebrow.   
  
“Yeah, he saved me from Shibutani.” Kota beams and turns to Jin. “I’m not sure I ever thanked you for that, by the way.”   
  
“So”—Jin looks between them—“you two were on the same island? Before…”   
  
They both nod.   
  
“It sank,” Hikaru explains in a matter-of-factly tone. “And we got separated.”   
  
“Then Domoto Koichi found him and put us together. Afterwards, we just gathered all these other guys until we found another island,” Kota continues happily.   
  
“I’m glad things worked out,” Jin says and he’s genuinely happy to see Kota in a good place. Considering the last time Jin had seen him, when he’d been much smaller and traumatised, it’s a happy change.   
  
Jin spots a hint of curly hair just at the far end of the hall. He sees Kazuya’s form disappear through the exit doors and feels his heart jump a little at the sight.   
  
“You should come visit us,” Kota says, not at all noticing Jin’s momentary distraction. “We’re new and still establishing contracts, but we’d love to set up something with the King of Pirates.”   
  
“I’d like it too,” Jin tells him. “An alliance would be great! But, um, can you excuse me for a minute?”   
  
The boys nod as Jin starts working his way through the crowd again. There’s so many people that Jin sort of has to swim through them and hope that nobody stops him to talk.   
  
It doesn’t work out in his favour. Before he can reach the exit, an arm comes around his middle and pulls him away from his course and into the chest of another. He recognises the musky scent of sea salt and a soft lion mane of brown and blonde hair before he even sees the face.   
  
“Matsumoto,” Jin whines as he’s brought chest-to-chest with the Arashi resident.   
  
“Such a rush, King of Pirates,” Matsumoto Jun teases him as Jin pushes himself out of his arms. “Stay and say hello to your allies, at least.”   
  
“Akanishi!” Ninomiya grins as he drapes an arm around Jin’s shoulders. He’s already half past drunk, given the stench of strong alcohol coming off him, and when Sakurai and Ohno take up Jin’s other shoulder Jin can tell they’re not much better.   
  
Jin’s dealings with the Arashi group are usually way more formal than this. Among the kingdoms, Arashi Island is known for being the firmest in their policies. Their contingency plans are second to none and they have plans stretching decades upon decades. Back up plans, extra policies. The advisors behind Ohno have intentions to last for centuries.   
  
It kind of helps that Arashi island itself is the sparkliest and brightest of all the islands, and with the shortest nights known to man. Whenever Jin does go there, sunglasses are kind of a must. He doesn’t know how the five of them manage but they seem fairly used to bright places.   
  
Aiba comes up behind Matsumoto and clings to his back. “Oh. My. God,” he says with an exaggerated gasp. “That Pirate Captain’s performance!”   
  
There’s a collective sound of agreed appreciation from the other Arashi members and Matsumoto rounds his eyes on Jin. “Oy, oy, oy,” he says. “King of Pirates, you failed to mention what a gem you had in your crew.”   
  
“You guys have already met Kamenashi,” Jin points out quietly.   
  
“Yeah, but we didn’t know he could do THAT!” Sakurai chuckles. “That was so pretty he almost made me believe he was from Arashi.”   
  
“You can’t have him,” Jin blurts automatically and the others laugh.   
  
“Where were you off to in such a hurry, Akanishi-kun?” Matsumoto teases and for a moment Jin wonders if Matsumoto actually knows where he was trying to go. Then again he can’t. Matsumoto Jun isn’t exactly in his ‘in-group’ here—he can’t know about his relationship with Kazuya.   
  
“Nowhere,” Jin sulks and tries to shrug Ninomiya off him but the other is so drunk he’s actually using him to keep himself standing.   
  
“So cold,” Sakurai pouts and pinches Jin’s cheek. “We’re showing you our unconditional love, Jin-chan.”   
  
Jin knows what Arashi’s love looks like. He’s never seen a more loving kingdom, full of people who are courteous and polite. They’re nice to each other, there’s barely any crime, and he doesn’t know what it is, but that sort of success seems weird to him considering his kingdom associates and consists of pirates and thieves.   
  
Jin sighs and sags into their hold, letting them hug him until they’re satisfied.   
  
“Alright, alright,” Matsumoto eventually says, reaching up to take Ninomiya off Jin. “Let’s let the man breathe.”   
  
“You guys should go hug Yokoyama. I saw he needs some love,” Jin suggests and pushes the five of them off towards the Kanjani group.   
  
He sets his eyes on the exit again and tries to worm his way through the crowd. He sees Nakamaru talking with Masuda somewhere out of the corner of his eye just as he reaches the doors and slips out into the cold hallway.   
  
People are allowed to enter and leave at will, it’s a party after all. So long as everything is well mannered, there aren’t many restrictions. Jin spots a couple of people milling and hanging around the hallways as he heads towards the elevator and takes it to his floor. The elevator dings and he walks out into the hallway—a giggle to his left that makes him look down the hall.   
  
He sees Tatsuya, back against the wall and hands in the lapels of Ryo’s shirt. He’s kissing him and trying to silence Ryo’s laughter as he fumbles with his door.   
  
“Fucking keycard,” Tatsuya hisses, pulling back from the kiss so he can see what he’s doing. Ryo resorts to kissing his neck until the door finally beeps and Tatsuya grabs him. He drags him into his room, shooting Jin a small grin as he follows and shuts the door behind himself.   
  
Jin shakes his head and turns to look at his bedroom. It’s right next to Kazuya’s. Jin feels his pockets for his keycard and frowns when he realises his pockets are empty. He checks his pant pockets but they’re empty too and he glances at the door. The light is green which means someone is already in there.   
  
Then he remembers right before he’d walked into the hall to be announced at the beginning of the night that he’d felt Kazuya touch his waist. At the time he thought it was because Kazuya just wanted to touch him, but now he realises Kazuya had actually robbed him.   
  
Figures.   
  
He goes to the door and tests the doorknob. It gives way freely and opens to reveal Kazuya is already sitting at the end of Jin’s bed, kimono and all. The pirate captain grins at him and crosses his legs.   
  
“You’re late,” he says, playfully scolding.   
  
Jin can’t help but smile as he walks in and takes his shoes off. He closes the door behind himself and locks it before turning to the beauty on his bed.   
  
“Is there a punishment?” he asks as he slowly approaches him.   
  
Kazuya nods. He stands up, the kimono glinting slightly in the light as he saunters towards Jin and places his hands on Jin’s chest. Jin takes in every single detail about him: From the curls and waves in his hair to the rainbow necklace underneath the layers of kimono and the silky black pants underneath. He slides his hands along Kazuya’s sides and slips one hand under the kimono. The other slides up Kazuya’s body to flick a lock of hair out of his eyes.   
  
In his arms, Kazuya looks like something ethereal. Something out of this world. He’s too beautiful to be real and yet, he’s a living, breathing man. To think he’s also capable of the foulest language known on the high seas, as well as the highest death toll to anyone who crosses him. Not to mention his infamous temper...   
  
A formidable ally indeed.   
  
Kazuya drags his hand down Jin’s chest, down his stomach and he goes into his own pocket. He pulls a silk material from there and reaches up to tie it over Jin’s eyes. Jin jumps in surprise but holds still as Kazuya ties the knot gently at the back of his head.   
  
He then takes Jin’s hand and leads him back to the bed where he pushes him to lie down on his back.   
  
Jin’s breath is coming in fast. His body is already excited as he feels Kazuya climbing over him and hovering, his warm breath hitting Jin’s face as he leans in.   
  
“Why have the advisors made you so pretty, I wonder,” Kazuya hums and Jin swallows hard. He can’t think of an answer.   
  
Kazuya brushes his lips gently, torturously, over Jin’s for a moment before kissing Jin’s jaw and neck instead. Jin whines as he feels Kazuya’s hands undoing his buttons and he reaches for the silk of Kazuya’s kimono.   
  
It doesn’t take him long to undress the other. Kazuya helps him and when he’s stripped Jin bare as well, he finally takes his lips. He lets Jin wrap his arms around his middle and moans happily when he realises Jin isn’t going to take off the blindfold.   
  
“Good boy,” Kazuya whispers in his ear, soft enough to make Jin shiver as Kazuya starts kissing down his chest.   
  
It’s strange when Jin has long enough to think about it. Kings don’t do things like have sex or love anyone in the first place, but Jin had fallen into sleeping with Kazuya so naturally that he rarely realises what that even means. It’s not like anyone taught him the intricacies of love-making and when he and Kazuya got to that point, the pirate had to teach him and learn at the same time.   
  
But it’s about knowing Kazuya’s body as well as he knows his own. About all the great things like a quickness of breath, the sound of someone else moaning because of something he’s doing right, an orgasm that makes his toes curl, and no king knows what that feels like. Except for him.   
  
Kazuya turns Jin around and Jin is so far gone he doesn’t even think twice about his face mashing into his pillow. The silk is cool against his face and his cheeks are burning as he grips the sheets and feels Kazuya behind him, kissing the back of his neck, kissing his shoulder blades, and moving his hands between Jin’s legs so quickly he hadn’t even realised they were there until he feels Kazuya’s fingers wrapped around his cock.   
  
Whining and moaning into the pillow, Jin’s body reacts on its own as he arches towards Kazuya and lets the pirate do whatever he wants with him.   
  
Kazuya chuckles. The dark, almost ominous sound vibrates in his chest and against Jin’s back. He drapes himself over Jin’s back and kisses his earlobe. He has one arm wrapped tightly around Jin’s middle and the other between his legs, stroking him until he can’t even breathe.   
  
Jin moves when Kazuya turns him onto his side, pushes back into his crotch and tilts his head back until Kazuya can meet his lips. Jin reaches around to touch his face, he’s blind but his senses are soaring. He can’t focus on anything other than the pulses of pleasure shooting through him, making him lean back into Kazuya seeking more.   
  
Jin moans Kazuya’s name and Kazuya’s laughter vibrates against his back.   
  
“I like it when you say my name,” Kazuya breathes, latching his lips onto Jin’s back as his other hand slides into Jin’s entrance, slick with saliva Jin hadn’t even realised he’d prepared. Jin gasps and Kazuya steals the air from his lungs.   
  
He doesn’t take long. Kazuya never takes long with preparation and when he slides in, hard and wanting, Jin can’t help the loud moan it tears from him.   
  
Kazuya’s panting, he’s chuckling and pushing into Jin. His hand is holding Jin’s hip in place and it’s all Jin can do not to scream.   
  
“You can be loud here,” Kazuya pants into his ear. He’s holding back and Jin can hear it in his voice. Among the pain and pleasure pulsing through Jin’s body, Kazuya is actually holding back. Kazuya kisses his back. “Say my name,” he tells him. “Say it.”   
  
This power is not one sided. Jin tightens himself and he can’t see him, but he loves the sound he rips from Kazuya. He does it again and Kazuya clings to him, his hips moving a little more now in search of that pleasure again.   
  
“You can say mine first,” Jin teases, knowing Kazuya will get him back for it.   
  
He’s not disappointed. Kazuya pushes him flat on his stomach and starts thrusting in, the shock and spike of pleasure is enough to send Jin’s nerves soaring and all Jin can do is moan into the pillow and push back against him.   
  
It’s all heat and sweat and panting and Jin loses his sense of where he is fast. All he can feel is Kazuya pressing into him, pressed against him. He turns his head and pants hard, muscles tightening even when he doesn’t mean to.   
  
“Jin,” Kazuya whimpers—actually whimpers—and Jin reaches a hand back to grab Kazuya’s hip. Kazuya reaches up and rips the blindfold off. He makes Jin look at him for a moment and Jin can see the lust in his eyes before Kazuya kisses him hard.   
  
Just a few more. Jin’s going mad, he can feel it throughout his body, he just needs a little more. He can almost see it, right there…   
  
“Fuuuuck, Kazuya!” he screams, his entire body tightening and loosening with blissful release that makes his eyes close and his body sag into the mattress. Kazuya follows quickly behind, pushing into Jin a few more times before his moan mixes with Jin and exhaustion hits him fast.   
  
They sink into the mattress, Jin panting into the pillow and Kazuya’s warm breaths hitting the back of Jin’s neck. Kazuya finally pulls himself off Jin and rolls onto his back instead.   
  
Jin gives himself a little more time to breathe, to get his thoughts working again. He rolls onto his back as well and snuggles into Kazuya’s side. They’re sticky and sweaty, and there’s a mess on the cover of the bed, but they can just get rid of the blanket and sleep with sheets. It’s not like they need the extra warmth.   
  
Kazuya drapes his arm around Jin and pulls him close. He kisses his forehead and Jin is so content, so warm and satisfied, that he could purr.   
  
They’re quiet for a moment. The sound of their breathing evens out and when Jin’s brain starts working again he looks up at Kazuya.   
  
“I didn’t know you could sing,” he admits, thinking of Kazuya’s earlier performance. “How long have you been hiding that from me?”   
  
“There’s a lot I can do that you’re not aware of—yet,” Kazuya smirks at Jin, his fingers drumming playfully on Jin’s arm as he looks at him. “Stick around long enough and you might see them all.”   
  
“I don’t intend to go anywhere,” Jin promises as he snuggles into Kazuya’s chest. “Or let you go.”   
  
“Good,” Kazuya closes his eyes in content and pulls Jin so close they’re smushed together in an awkward but, surprisingly, comfortable angle.   
  
Jin can hear Kazuya’s breathing getting slower, deeper with the onset of sleep and he looks at his face. Kazuya is so relaxed, so content. Jin kisses his chin first, then his lips. He rests his head on Kazuya’s shoulder and watches him for a moment before closing his own eyes too.   
  
He’s never told Kazuya he loves him. He doesn’t think he has to. It’s one of those things they can take for granted about each other. There’s no need to vocalise it, but just for tonight Jin whispers it to him when he thinks Kazuya is sleeping. He falls asleep not long after and misses his chance to see the way Kazuya’s lips twitch with a smile.   
  
\-   
  
“I think we should go to the Moon Islands.”   
  
Jin proposes this at breakfast. They’re all gathered around the rickety table and they’re sailing somewhere between the Century Islands and Arashi when Jin gathers his courage and says it. He sees Tatsuya pause with cereal still on his spoon and Kazuya frown in confusion.   
  
“Are you insane?” Tatsuya immediately asks.   
  
“No,” Jin says carefully. “It’s what I think we should do.”   
  
“Jin,” Kazuya warns, trying to mediate this. Already he’s got his arm out in front of Tatsuya as though he’s afraid the other is going to vault over the table and strangle their king. “The Moon Islands is full of huge wolves. It’s not safe there.”   
  
The others are looking at him too but, in all honesty, the Moon Islands mean more to Kazuya and Tatsuya, so it was their reaction Jin was fearing the most. He sighs and puts his food down, he has to explain himself.   
  
“The world has been changing,” he tells them. “It has been for years. Koyama noticed it and I’ve been noticing them too. Things that happen, things that appear or disappear, and our advisors tell us nothing. The Moon Islands are something that—I believe—shouldn’t go unchecked.”   
  
“Big wolves though?” Nakamaru raises an eyebrow and swallows hard. “Maybe that would be best left to an army, not a small shipment of pirates.”   
  
“I’m not suggesting we take the wolves on,” Jin assures them. “But I think I have to see it for myself. If this unrest that’s spreading is actually something that happened on the Moon Islands, then maybe there’s a way to prevent it from happening elsewhere. From spreading more.”   
  
“And what if this ‘unrest’, as you call it”—Kazuya argues—“Is actually caused by natural forces?”   
  
Jin blinks. He’s confused for all of two seconds before he frowns. “What about great big wolves on a place like the Moon Islands is natural in any way?” he asks, almost incredulously. “Do you even know where they came from? Nothing I know about the Moon Islands said anything about wolves.”   
  
Tatsuya is looking down at his lap, shaking a little, and Kazuya looks at him worriedly. Jin turns to him. “Ueda, look,” he tries. “I don’t think it’s something that should go unchecked. What if there’s someone like you on the island? Someone in need of help.”   
  
“There won’t be.” Tatsuya shakes his head. “Not anymore. It’s been years.”   
  
“But we have to try—”   
  
Tatsuya slams his hand on the table so hard their bowls and plates shake with the force. The rabbit gets up, pushing his chair back so violently it clatters on the floor and he rounds his eyes on Jin.   
  
“YOU DON’T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT THE MOON ISLAND!” he screams at him. It’s the first time Jin’s ever been on the butt end of Tatsuya’s anger and it throws him right back. “OR ABOUT ME!”   
  
Tatsuya storms off and the others are stunned for about two seconds before Taguchi gets up and follows him out.   
  
The rest of them stare at the door where Tatsuya escaped. Kazuya takes a deep breath and turns back to Jin.   
  
“Seriously Jin,” he pleads quietly. “Don’t suggest that again.”   
  
Jin blinks and looks at Koki and Nakamaru. Koki’s just stunned and Nakamaru doesn’t look like he knows what to think. Jin turns back to Kazuya and leans in. “You’re really okay with leaving the Moon Islands alone forever?”   
  
“No, I’m not,” Kazuya answers honestly. “The last time I was there it was horrific, and I can’t imagine what it’s like now. But it’s an open wound for Tatsuya. For his sake, let it go.”   
  
He leaves the table as well and Jin leans back in his chair with a frustrated sigh. He looks at Koki and Nakamaru.   
  
“Are you guys okay with this?” he asks.   
  
“Big wolves,” Nakamaru says quietly, he shivers at the very thought. “I’m okay with never going near that if I can help it.”   
  
Jin rolls his eyes and turns to Koki. “What about you?”   
  
Koki shakes his head and looks down. He thinks it over and sighs.   
  
“I remember when I first saw Tatsuya,” he admits. “Battered, broken...beaten near to death and it was the Moon Islands that did it. He’s had nightmares ever since and even now, years and years after he was saved, he still has nightmares that cause him to run to the nearest safe thing he can find.”   
  
“I can’t believe he thinks of Taguchi and Nishikido as ‘safe,’” Nakamaru mutters under his breath.   
  
Koki’s eyes take on a shade of compassion and it’s not a rare sight. Koki is, at his core, a very gentle soul. He looks at Jin, “I’m not okay with leaving the Moon Islands as it is. You’re right. If there’s someone on there like him, we should help, but I don’t see what we can do. We’re a ship of pirates, we’re not strong enough to take on the wolves.”   
  
“I’m not suggesting we take on the wolves,” Jin repeats himself. “I’m suggesting we go in there and take a look—see if we can find out what happened. Those wolves didn’t just appear out of thin air. They had to come from somewhere. Maybe someone put them there and, if that’s the case, I’d like to find out who.”   
  
“We travelled to Vena trying to find the thing that killed Kazuya’s father, remember?” Koki points out. “And we found nothing.”   
  
“To be fair, it was a parasite we were looking for,” Nakamaru chips in quietly. “They’re not easy to find anyway.”   
  
“What if Kame is right?” Koki asks. “What if those changes are natural? If they are, we can’t do anything about it anyway.”   
  
“We’ll never know if we just leave it as it is and don’t investigate it,” Jin points out. “I know Tatsuya is traumatised by the island, but…” he sighs in frustration and leans back.   
  
Koki and Nakamaru watch him as he thinks it through. He’s not the captain, Kazuya is. On Kazuya’s word, the crew will take this ship anywhere. It’s Kazuya who needs to be convinced. But Kazuya won’t move towards that island unless Tatsuya says he can.   
  
It’s ultimately Tatsuya who needs to be convinced.   
  
“Give him an hour or so to cool off,” Nakamaru suggests, as if he can read Jin’s mind. “There’s nothing worse than an angry rabbit.”   
  
That, at least, makes Jin smile.   
  
Jin gives him two hours. He occupies himself with checking on the crew, making sure Cookie hasn’t fallen asleep on lookout again before he starts searching for Tatsuya. He finds him and Taguchi in the storage hull. They’re sitting on the crates and Jin gets the strangest flashback of when he’d first entered this area to steal alcohol.   
  
How time has passed.   
  
“Tatsuya,” he says as he approaches the two. “Can we talk?”   
  
Taguchi looks at Tatsuya. The boy is wrapped in a fluffy blue blanket that engulfs most of his body, save the head and the feet. He looks quite cosy. Tatsuya nods to Taguchi who then climbs down from the crates and smiles at Jin on his way out.   
  
Jin waits for the door to close and turns to look at Tatsuya. He takes a deep breath and climbs up the crates to take a seat near the boy.   
  
“Talk to me,” he says. “You say I don’t know anything about you or the Moon Islands—”   
  
“You don’t,” Tatsuya replies firmly. He’s not even looking at Jin, he’s looking ahead at the other crates on the other side of the hull.   
  
“Then tell me what I don’t know,” Jin asks. “I get that you’re scared of wolves. That you’re still having nightmares and you’re traumatised by them but...but we shouldn’t leave that island alone. Not when we know something evil is there.”   
  
Tatsuya frowns. He looks confused for a moment and finally he looks at Jin.   
  
“Evil?” he asks. “The wolves….they’re evil?”   
  
“They hurt you,” Jin reminds him. “That’s what Kazuya told me. When they found you, there were wolves and they’d hurt you.”   
  
“They did but”—Tatsuya pauses—“evil?”   
  
Now, it’s Jin’s turn to look confused. Tatsuya doesn’t say anything for a long time. He just frowns and Jin can see the cogs in his head moving as he thinks it over. Finally, he turns to Jin.   
  
“They were my friends,” he finally says quietly. “I knew them all. They had names...family...loved ones. I grew up with them.”   
  
Jin blinks at him and Tatsuya continues. “They weren’t always wolves. They were rabbits just like me. We grew up with the fae and I knew them all. Then one day...one day...one of them went missing. We couldn’t find him. We searched for days and finally we found him in a hole. Dead. Chewed. He was missing his ear and both his feet—I was eight when I saw him. I’ll never forget it.”   
  
Jin doesn’t interrupt and listens. Tatsuya’s eyes are faraway, in his own world as he talks.   
  
“His mother cried for justice. His father wanted revenge. My friends wanted revenge and we found the thing that killed him. A man. Not even of our island, he was an outsider. Came to the Moon Islands, got lost and wanted food. He hunted a rabbit—he didn’t know the rabbit was human too.” Tatsuya shivers but he continues bravely, a quiver in his voice.   
  
“The man was unarmed. He was defenceless and my friends slaughtered him,” Tatsuya breathes. “I was there. I saw it. I begged them to let him go. ‘ _Don’t kill him!_ ’ I said, but they wouldn’t listen. They killed him right in front of me and that’s when it happened. They...they turned…”   
  
Jin stares, he remembers Kazuya telling him once that the rabbits on the Moon Islands should have been capable of turning into other things and it clicks.   
  
“They turned into wolves,” Jin finishes with a quiet voice. “That’s why…”   
  
Tatsuya nods and sniffs, bringing his knees up and hugging them to his chest. “They didn’t recognise me when they turned. Didn’t recognise anyone. They were gone and in their place were these monsters. It was them, but it wasn’t them. It had their eyes, but it wasn’t them. They killed that man and in so doing, killed themselves.”   
  
Jin stares. This is why Tatsuya never kills anything. Why, when he’s in a fight with the pirates, he won’t hurt anyone. Jin had thought it was because the rabbit was naturally peaceful but there’s another element to it. If he ever does take a life, it’ll take his in turn.   
  
Tatsuya shivers. He stares at the wall for the longest time and Jin reaches out to touch his arm.   
  
“I’m sorry,” he says quietly. “Really, I’m so sorry.”   
  
Tatsuya sniffs and Jin doesn’t know what to do. How can he ask Tatsuya to go back to that?   
  
A moment passes and Tatsuya takes a deep breath.   
  
“We need to go to Moon Island,” he tells Jin. His voice is shaking but he’s determined. “I’ll tell Kame to set a course there.”   
  
Jin watches him. “Are you sure?” he asks. “What if—”   
  
“You’re right,” Tatsuya says. “We can’t leave it alone.”   
  
He slides off the crates and back onto his own feet. Tatsuya makes for the door, but before he leaves he stops and turns to look at Jin.   
  
“Thanks,” he says and he leaves.   
  
Jin watches after him. He feels like Tatsuya’s just given him a piece of himself, trusted him with this information that haunts Tatsuya every single night. It makes Jin feel humbled, touched, that Tatsuya trusts him so.   
  
“You’re welcome,” he says to the empty room and listens to Tatsuya’s footsteps fade as he walks away.   
  
\-   
  
When Jin read about the Moon Islands in his textbook, it had always seemed like the least realistic of all the islands. Bathed in perpetual night, the sun was not known on this land, only two full moons that seemed to glow and filter through the forests like rays of blue light.   
  
The Mercury Pirates near the island at around midday but it feels like midnight when Kazuya orders the ship to anchor just a little away from the harbour. The crew peer out curiously, looking over the blue lit island. The island itself is large, but all they can see beyond the beach is endless forests and, way out in the distance, a castle. Even from their perspective, the castle is grand and intimidating, standing tall and glowing under the moons.   
  
“These are the Moon Islands?” Nakamaru asks curiously. “It looks...bigger than I thought it would be. Is this the main island?”   
  
Tatsuya doesn’t say anything and Taguchi, as if sensing what was going on with him, rubs his back reassuringly. Jin stares out at the island. For all he’s heard from Kazuya and Tatsuya about massive wolves and the dangers on the island, it looks silent and peaceful from his vantagepoint. He takes a deep breath and turns to Tatsuya.   
  
“You don’t have to come,” he reminds him. “You can stay on the ship if you want.”   
  
“I’m coming,” Tatsuya answers, his tone firm and decisive, leaving no room for argument as Koki goes to help Kazuya with the pinnace they’ll take to the shore.   
  
As they’re doing so, however, Jin suddenly notices the rest of the crew. Cookie is talking to himself up on his lookout post. Some of the other crew are wandering around in circles muttering and some are talking to the walls of the hull. Their resident canon expert, Chip, is gesturing to the mast; loudly arguing with it about returning his stolen leg—which is still clearly attached below his knee.   
  
Jin frowns. “What’s going on?”   
  
“Moon Island is surrounded by an ocean called ‘The Luna Sea,’” Tatsuya explains. “For those who don’t have the mental capacity to withstand it, the effects of the Luna Sea can make people go crazy.”   
  
“Nice to know most of my crew aren’t mentally strong,” Kazuya huffs as he and Koki unhook the pinnace and set it over the edge. “That’s why they’re not coming with us.”   
  
“Is it really okay to leave them on the ship?” Taguchi asks, quite concerned as he watches Cookie shout at invisible birds. “They might sail off without us.”   
  
“Cookie wouldn’t dare,” Kazuya shrugs. “Besides, in this state none of them know how to operate the ship, let alone bring the anchor up. Besides,” he gestures to the few remaining sane crew members who are currently watching the others with slight concern “Not everyone is insane at the moment. They’ll mind the ship. We’re safe.”   
  
Taguchi stays close to Tatsuya as the six of them pile into the boat. Kazuya and Koki operate the pulley to lower them to the Luna Sea, carefully navigating the waters as the row their small crew of six to shore. The closer they get, the bigger and darker those forest appear. The trees are thick, but their leaves are light and airy, allowing for several rays of blue moonlight to filter through and touch the forest floor.   
  
Koki rows them to the shore wherein they get off and he ties the pinnace to the nearest point he can find. Together, the six of them look over the island.   
  
“Where do we start?” Kazuya asks.   
  
Jin looks at Tatsuya and the rabbit is silent. His eyes are taking in the sight of his home that he hasn’t seen in years.   
  
“It hasn’t changed,” he notes as he starts to lead the group out of the sandy shores and towards the forest entrance. Untouched as this island is there isn’t a trail available, but Tatsuya doesn’t seem to need one as he enters the forest floor with the rest of them trailing behind him.   
  
It’s eerie in a way. When the six of them usually encounter forests at night, there’s often some sound. Maybe a frog in the pond or the crickets in the trees. Here, there is nothing. No noise except for their footsteps and the rustle of the leaves against the wind, which even that manages to sound more like a whisper than leaves brushing against each other.   
  
“At the slightest movement, run and hide,” Jin warns the others. “If we see wolves, we make for the boat. Try to get back to the ship and no heroics—Koki.”   
  
“What?” Koki chokes. “I wasn’t gonna—”   
  
“You can’t fight these wolves,” Tatsuya adds with a side-glance at the joker. “So don’t even try.”   
  
“I didn’t say anything!” Koki exclaims, flapping his arms around in indignation.   
  
“Jeez Koki,” Taguchi chimes in with a huge grin, he’s jumped on the bandwagon. “Spare us the heroics.”   
  
“What the fuck?!” Koki splutters as Kazuya pats his shoulder.   
  
“It’s okay, Koki,” the pirate captain assures him. “If it makes you feel better, you can beat up the rabbits for us.”   
  
“You guys are assholes,” Koki huffs.   
  
Nakamaru shakes his head and keeps close to the group, making sure not to take up the rear or go too far ahead of them. Of all of them, he’s the one most worried about the monsters they’ll supposedly find on this island.   
  
Still, he can’t help but tease Koki too as he pats his back.   
  
“I’ll protect you,” he says and the others laugh as Koki whacks his head.   
  
“I don’t need your protection,” Koki mutters but the mood is lifted a little and they all feel a little safer around each other because of it.   
  
They walk deeper into the forest, the silence making them all uncomfortable as their shoes sound too loud crunching the dry leaves underneath them. Half an hour passes before Tatsuya stops and holds out his arm to stop the rest of them.   
  
“Hear something?” Kazuya asks, his hand automatically going to hold the hem of Jin’s shirt.   
  
“Yeah,” Tatsuya mutters, his sharp eyes looking out over the forest.   
  
His caution makes the rest of them look around too, but all Jin can see is endless forest and beyond that nothing but darkness. Jin sees Tatsuya’s nose twitch slightly. An old habit he usually does when he’s in rabbit form.   
  
Something shifts to their left and the group jump in surprise but they can’t see anything.   
  
“Run,” Tatsuya says quietly as he takes a step back. They hear another snap and he grabs Taguchi’s arm. “RUN!”   
  
They hear more noises now. Twigs snap, leaves rustle louder, and the trees seem to moan and creak as a strong gust of wind nearly blows them all off their feet. Jin looks up and hears a loud cackling unlike anything he’s ever heard before in his life—like a demon laughing a high pitched laugh that shakes the bones of his spine into panic.   
  
He feels Kazuya grab his hand and runs blindly. At some point, the others run in different directions but none stop for each other. Jin feels a fierce need to get away, to run away. Every cell in his blood is boiling, screaming to get away.   
  
Another gust of wind knocks Kazuya down with him and Jin feels his hand leave Kazuya’s grip. He frantically tries to search for it but when he looks up, the other isn’t there. The laughter gets louder and Jin screams. He rushes blindly, running through trees as leaves and twigs slap his face until he finds a large tree trunk to hide behind.   
  
Pressing his back to the wood, Jin gasps and pants from exertion but the tree is big enough to shield his body. He closes his eyes, trying to control his breathing as he presses against the tree. The howling of the wind that he can feel rushing past on either side, blocked by the tree that shields him, is intensely loud.   
  
Suddenly, it all goes quiet.   
  
For just a moment, Jin can only hear himself breathing. He slowly opens his eyes and ahead of him he sees something more than the forest that surrounds him. Not too far ahead of him is a river and a bridge. A trail begins near where he stands, made of stone and gems, and it seems to glow purple and blue from the moonlight.   
  
Looking around, Jin spots none of his crew mates. Hesitant, he slowly nears the path and jumps behind a tree when he sees something move ahead of him.   
  
“Bloody hell…”   
  
He knows that voice.   
  
Jin peeks around the tree and sees two figures standing near the bridge. One has something dangling from his face, the other has his hands on his hips. Jin frowns and creeps a little closer.   
  
“The chief said, ‘catch them’,” another familiar voice scolds the other. “‘ _Catch them_.’ What part of ‘ _catching_ ’ were you doing when he snapped your nose?!”   
  
The light hits them and Jin’s breath leaves his lungs immediately. It’s Kazuya. Only it’s not Kazuya. The boy with the snapped nose is standing in front of the river, trying to fix his nose. He has Kazuya’s face and body, but Jin somehow knows it’s not him. The dead giveaway, of course, is the long nose that’s snapped in half.   
  
He wears dark clothes and a green sort of cloth with swirly white designs drape over his shoulders, along with a purple band wrapped around his head. If it weren’t for the nose and the slight glow in his eyes, he could be mistaken as human. He looks exactly like Kazuya, except Jin knows he’s not him.   
  
“Oy,” the Kazuya-lookalike growls. “He ran RIGHT into my nose! I wasn’t expecting him to be that fast!”   
  
“Fucking hell…”   
  
The other one looks exactly like Taguchi. He’s dressed the same, only the band around his head is dark blue and instead of the cloth being draped over his shoulders, it’s tied at the neck and covers his back like a cape.   
  
Jin’s heard about these creatures. However, like a lot of things from the Moon Islands, he assumed they were an exaggeration—a made-up fairy tale he’d never see face to face. They’re the Tengu Devils, characterised mainly by their long noses, strange appearance, and even stranger personalities.   
  
The textbooks described these creatures as ‘terribly conceited’.   
  
“Well, I would have done that better,” Taguchi-Tengu skites as he takes out a leaf fan to fan himself with. “I would have caught him.”   
  
“Shut up,” Kazuya-Tengu mutters and taps at his broken nose. He huffs. “Let’s find the chief. Maybe he caught the others.”   
  
“What are the pirates even doing back on Moon Island?” Taguchi-Tengu ponders to himself. “They even brought the rabbit back.”   
  
“Who cares?” Kazuya-Tengu shakes his head and makes his way along the bridge. “Let’s just find them.”   
  
Jin frowns. The Tengu Devils were looking for him and the others. By the sounds of it, there are more of them. Had any of them caught his crew members? What would they do to them?   
  
“Kame,” he breathes quietly and shakes his head. If the Tengu Devils caught Kazuya, he’d have to go after them to get him back.   
  
He waits until the Tengu Devils are far enough away before creeping after them. Jin comes out of his hiding spot and looks around carefully before approaching the bridge. It looks newly constructed. The wood is light and, like everything else, glows. Even the water below glows with what appears to be glittering sparkles and tendrils of light radiating out of it. The water isn’t even dark, but a bright blue as if the riverbed itself is made of luminescent rock.   
  
It’s beautiful, but weird.   
  
Jin creeps along the bridge and keeps the Tengu Devils in his sights as he follows them along the stone path. Each stone and gem shining brilliantly. The Tengu Devils take the path up a hill until they reach what appears to be a small village, cut off with a fence made of wood like tree trunks tied to each other until they formed a perimeter around the village.   
  
Jin spots the guards at the entrance and growls. He’ll never get past them and he doesn’t want to be seen. He just wants to make sure the other Tengu Devils didn’t get any of his crew.   
  
Noticing a tree nearby the perimeter, Jin heads to it and quickly climbs up until he can see over the fence and into the village. It’s a tiny place, about six small huts and one campfire in the middle. Jin finds a branch on the tree he can stand on, wrapping his arms around the tree to stop himself falling as he watches.   
  
Kazuya-Tengu and Taguchi-Tengu approach the fireplace in the middle and bow to a third Tengu. He has a yellow band around his head. It’s Nakamaru.   
  
“Sorry, chief!” Taguchi-Tengu bows immediately with Kazuya-Tengu. He points at him. “It was all his fault.”   
  
“My nose broke!” Kazuya-Tengu points out with a pitiful voice and huge eyes. “He broke my nose!”   
  
Nakamaru-Tengu groans in annoyance. “Oy!” he snaps. “Didn’t I tell you to get the pirates?! What are you doing breaking your nose?”   
  
“He ran into me!” Kazuya-Tengu exclaims. “Look! My nose!”   
  
Nakamaru-Tengu raises his hand and hovers it over Kazuya-Tengu’s nose. Jin watches as a small cast of light comes from his fingers, lifting the nose up until it’s back in place.   
  
To Jin, it’s beyond weird seeing these mirror versions of his crew with long noses. He looks up as another one comes in looking annoyed. This time it’s Koki, the dark blue band around his head is tied off slightly to the side and he has a leaf fan in his other hand.   
  
“They got away,” Koki-Tengu informs Nakamaru-Tengu with a slightly apologetic tone. It’s quickly matched by, “But it totally wasn’t my fault!”   
  
“Are you saying it was MINE then?!”   
  
Tatsuya-Tengu has a red band. He marches up to Koki-Tengu and shoves him. “I got distracted!”   
  
“By your reflection in the river!” Koki-Tengu argues.   
  
“Well,” Tatsuya-Tengu folds his arms indignantly. “I was pretty.”   
  
“For the love of Wolf,” Nakamaru-Tengu groans. “The King is not going to be happy with us. If those pirates take our clock, we’re done for!”   
  
“AoTen,” Kazuya-Tengu turns to address Koki-Tengu. “Were you sure they were here to take the clock?” Kazuya-Tengu asks him.   
  
“My intel is the best in the world and I am never, ever wrong,” Koki-Tengu insists. The others groan but none raise their voices to disagree with them.   
  
Nakamaru-Tengu looks around and frowns. “Wait,” he mutters. “Where’s PinkTen?”   
  
Suddenly, Jin in the tree hears the snap of a twig behind him. He turns around to see...himself. A perfect mirror image with two glaring differences: The one before him has a long nose and a pink band around his head. He grins wide and it’s the most terrifying thing Jin’s ever seen.   
  
“Hi,” Jin-Tengu beams at him and Jin screams.   
  
He meant to only jump back but he’d forgotten he was actually standing in a tree. Jin jumps, his hands letting go of the tree and before he realises it he’s falling. Jin-Tengu’s face turns from amusement to startled surprise as Jin falls off the tree and hits the ground with a hard thump.   
  
Jin groans, the pain shoots up his back in an instant but he hasn’t hit his head on anything. He looks up to see the Jin-Tengu leaning over the branch and looking down at him with a highly amused grin on his face.   
  
“Oooy!” Jin-Tengu giggles. “I just wanna talk!”   
  
Jin doesn’t want to talk, he doesn’t want to be anywhere near these things. He scrambles up onto his feet and takes off down the gem path. As he runs, he hears Jin-Tengu laughing and running after him.   
  
“Come on!” Jin-Tengu giggles, his legs catching up to Jin as he runs. “I won’t bite! Honest! I’ll only nibble a little! I’ll be gentle, I promise!”   
  
Jin rushes blindly through multiple bushes and past countless trees. He finds the river and rushes along the bank. Just as he feels the Tengu Devil right behind him, he makes the horrible mistake of turning his head around to look. Jin-Tengu is terrifying. His eyes are huge and white, mouth wide open with sharp teeth ready to eat him whole. Jin-Tengu’s nose is long and, somehow, the tengu flies towards him with alarming speed.   
  
Then Jin slips. His foot catches air instead of ground and he’s falling. Again. However, this time it isn’t from a tree but from the edge of the river where it drops into a huge waterfall. Jin’s arms flail as he frantically tries to grab something, anything, but his hands grasp only water and air. He’s pulled over the waterfall with nothing left to do but scream and watch as the Jin-Tengu stops at the edge of the waterfall and peers below as Jin’s form falls through the air and lands with a splash in the lake.   
  
When he wakes—and he doesn’t even realise he’d been unconscious—his lungs burn as his body bolts upright to cough out the water he’d swallowed.   
  
The first thing he sees is Kazuya, his hair and clothes wet, sitting beside him with a relieved smile on his face.   
  
“Thank God,” the pirate captain says, “I thought…”   
  
Jin coughs water from his lungs and turns over onto his side instead. He looks around and sees the lake nearby, he’s been dragged out onto the forest floor and nobody else is around except Kazuya.   
  
Jin’s head and arms hurt, he’s soaking wet and freezing, but he’s still alive. He looks up the waterfall and coughs. “The tengu?”   
  
“Still up there,” Kazuya tells him. “You met them too? I ran into the one that looked like me. Snapped his nose.”   
  
Jin pushes himself into a proper sitting position and Kazuya helps him, his hands on Jin’s back as Jin coughs out the rest of the water in his lungs. He groans and rubs his head. “Where are the others?”   
  
“I don’t know,” Kazuya admits. “We all split up when the tengu arrived. I should have remembered we’d see them again.”   
  
Jin looks at him and Kazuya explains himself. “The Tengu Devils are the...I suppose they’re kind of like the guardians of this island. They’ll chase off any intruder.”   
  
“Why did they look like us?” Jin asks as he rubs his head.   
  
“Every single intruder who enters the island will have one tengu who mirrors him. For every intruder, there is one tengu. When there are no intruders, there are no tengu,” Kazuya explains patiently. “The fact that there is a tengu that mirrors Tatsuya means this island sees him as an outsider now. I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”   
  
Jin pushes himself up onto his feet and Kazuya helps him. They’re both soaked to the bone and Jin shivers when he feels a particularly cruel gust of wind cut right through him.   
  
“We need to get warm,” he says, teeth chattering and lips going blue.   
  
“I’ll make a fire,” Kazuya tells him and starts leading him deeper into the forest. “There’s a clearing up ahead. It seemed safe enough. We’ll just have to keep an eye out for tengu.”   
  
Or wolves, Jin thinks to himself as they near a small clearing. It’s a ruin and Jin can’t imagine what it had been before. A small block of broken concrete and some broken pedestals remain next to a clear space of green and leaves. The area is big enough for a small fire that, hopefully, won’t gather too much attention.   
  
Kazuya sits Jin down on the grass and starts gathering logs and twigs to stack in the middle. As he does so, Jin starts rubbing dry sticks together to make a fire. He’d been taught this trick a very long time ago and his tutors had always insisted it was useless to teach a king how to survive in the wild when he’ll never have to.   
  
Jin’s never been happier that they were wrong this time.   
  
Sighing in relief when he sees a small spark turn into a little flame, he coaxes it alive with twigs and leaves as Kazuya sets the logs down. They wait for the fire to breathe, to grow bigger, before feeding it logs and branches. Finally, Kazuya sits next to Jin and sighs when he feels the heat on his fingers.   
  
“Well,” Kazuya says after a moment. “You’re not going to dry off while you’re still wearing your clothes, but I’m not sure undressing is a good idea out here.”   
  
Jin chuckles. “What a sight for the wolves,” he shakes his head and heats his hands up on the fire. “If they eat us whole while we’re having sex, at least I’ll die happy.”   
  
Kazuya kisses his cheek and nuzzles it with his nose before snuggling into his side.   
  
Despite both of them pointing that it isn’t a good idea, Kazuya still reaches up to turn Jin’s head so he can kiss his lips. Jin kisses him back easily and in all truth it’s not a good idea. Aside from the threat of tengu still looking for them, there are wolves and God knows what else on the Moon Islands. Anything could be here, but Jin can’t help it.   
  
He’s spent the last half hour wondering where the rest of his crew were, and when that tengu was catching up to him he honestly thought he was going to be eaten. What terrifies him more is that his last thought before he fell off the waterfall wasn’t that he’d leave his kingdom vulnerable if he died. It was that he’d never see Kazuya again.   
  
Kings were not supposed to feel that.   
  
Peeling Kazuya’s vest off isn’t too hard. It’s wet, but it’s leather and catches only a little on his shirt. Kazuya leans in to kiss Jin’s neck as Jin pulls on Kazuya’s shirt. It clings to his skin and Jin finds resistance in pulling. He hears Kazuya laugh.   
  
“Hang on, hang on,” Kazuya pulls back from him and looks down. He helps Jin pull his shirt over his head and yelps when it catches and pulls on his hair.   
  
“Fucking shirt,” Kazuya grumbles as Jin laughs at him and puts it aside.   
  
Kazuya goes for Jin’s shirt and it clings to his arms, bunching up and pulling on skin as Kazuya drags it over his head. It pulls on Jin’s hair and Kazuya has to stop halfway because Jin keeps wriggling and protesting.   
  
The pirate captain laughs at him. “It’s almost off. It just needs a good yank.”   
  
“I’ll ‘yank’ you if you pull my hair out!” Jin whines but he lets Kazuya pull until the wretched material finally lets his hair go and falls to the ground with a heavy thump.   
  
Kazuya silences Jin’s protests and whines with another kiss and it’s better now that they don’t have shirts clinging to them. Jin feels Kazuya’s hands on his pants and he stops him.   
  
“If this starts pulling at my dick, just know I’m going to hold you personally responsible,” he warns.   
  
Kazuya’s laughter and smile is so bright it’s blinding.   
  
“I’ll be gentle with you,” he promises and leans in for another kiss. Jin closes his eyes and lets the other push him onto his back.   
  
Beside them, the fire crackles away quietly.   
  
\-   
  
Jin feels something pointy poking at his cheek first. Opening his eyes groggily, he finds himself still lying on the grass where he’d fallen asleep. The fire beside them is dead now and Kazuya’s warm body is snuggled into his side, holding him protectively.   
  
He looks up to see Tatsuya standing above them. He’s been poking Jin’s cheek with a leafy stick and Jin yelps when Tatsuya nearly pokes him in the eye with it.   
  
He then belatedly realises that both he and Kazuya are naked. Not only that, the rest of the crew is standing around them—each with their own expression of disgust and fascination.   
  
“Of all the places to have sex and fall asleep,” Koki laughs as Tatsuya starts poking Kazuya’s face with the stick. “You two are fearless.”   
  
“‘I’m actually really surprised the wolves didn’t hear you,” Taguchi adds. He doesn’t look like he knows whether to be disgusted or curious about this. “I heard you from the other side of the lake. I thought the tengu were eating you.”   
  
“No, I knew what that sound was,” Nakamaru winces and tries to look anywhere but at the two naked people on the ground. “I just didn’t want to come any closer.”   
  
“OW!” Kazuya shrieks when Tatsuya pokes him in the eye with the stick. “What the fuck?!”   
  
“Morning,” Tatsuya grunts and puts the stick away at last. “Get dressed, you two. I think I found where we have to go.”   
  
After Kazuya and Jin get dressed into their mildly damp clothing, they follow the group towards a path Tatsuya had found earlier. As they walk, Tatsuya explains a little more about the tengu.   
  
“Guardians of the forest and castle,” he says, leading them up a steep and rocky pathway full of stone steps. “They magically appear for every intruder and they mirror them. It would throw off suspicion if it weren’t for the fact that tengu have those noses and they’re all conceited as hell.”   
  
“They called each other different names,” Jin points out, remembering how the tengu had referred to each other as ‘AoTen’ and ‘PinkTen.’   
  
“Those bands around their heads—colour names, that’s all,” Tatsuya shrugs. “Anyway, they’re not just here to scare off and eat intruders, they also protect a clock.”   
  
“A clock?” Koki frowns and catches himself on the grass as he tries to climb up the steps. They shouldn’t be called steps, they’re far too steep. “What’s so special about the clock?”   
  
“It controls Moon Island,” Tatsuya explains. “For centuries, those clocks have been frozen and protected by the Tengu Devils. That’s why the sun never shines here, that’s why it’s never day. That’s why…” he pauses and thinks about it for a moment before turning to the others. “No one ever ages.”   
  
Kazuya stops climbing, he looks at Tatsuya and frowns. “But you aged.”   
  
“I left the island,” Tatsuya says. “My friends here, they’ll be the same age they were when I left. If they’re still alive, that is.”   
  
“So why do the tengu think we’re here to steal the clock?” Nakamaru asks, he’s panting and he keeps slipping on the steps. Taguchi lingers near him to help him climb.   
  
“It’s valuable,” Kazuya answers for Tatsuya. “Something that stops an entire island from aging. That’s valuable beyond compare. It’s like the fountain of youth—not that I want to steal it,” he adds quickly for Tatsuya’s sake.   
  
“So then...how old are you?” Jin asks as Tatsuya reaches the top at last and leans down to help people up.   
  
“I’d rather not say,” Tatsuya replies, helping Kazuya up first, then reaching for Koki’s arm. “Besides, it hardly matters now.”   
  
They all make it to the top and Jin tries not to look down. It’s one thing to have fallen from this height at the waterfall, and he isn’t terrified of heights like Nakamaru, but he’d still rather not remind himself.   
  
As Jin follows the group, he thinks over the information he’s learnt. Ultimately, it makes sense that the tengu are here. That clock sounds like the most valuable thing he’s ever heard of and he wouldn’t be surprised if other islands have tried and evidently failed to steal it before.   
  
“So,” he frowns as he falls into step beside Tatsuya. “That clock. Now that we’re standing on the Moon Islands, does it affect us?”   
  
“Yes,” Tatsuya shrugs. “Not that you’ll notice much of a difference if you stay for a day or two. It’s only after years that you really notice nothing is aging.”   
  
“Cool,” Koki hums and runs a hand down his chest. “So, right now this body won’t age.”   
  
“Essentially, yes,” Tatsuya sighs like he’s tired of this. “But there’s a price you have to pay for not aging. The clock demands it of everyone.”   
  
“And what’s that?” Taguchi asks.   
  
Tatsuya stops and the others do as well. He looks up and Jin notices the way the moonlight shines through the trees. It’s blue rays feel more powerful and one stops right above Tatsuya, lighting him like the Moon Island resident he really is.   
  
“Stay for one day, nothing will happen to you,” Tatsuya explains calmly. “Stay for one week, a little magic will seep into your bloodstream. Stay for one year and the clock demands your life.”   
  
Kazuya frowns in confusion and takes Tatsuya’s shoulder. “What do you mean by that?”   
  
“I mean that the clock owns you if you’re around it longer than a year,” Tatsuya says, turning around to look at Kazuya. “It owns me. I was born here, the soil that made my body into what it is, is magical. It has heavy consequences.”   
  
“Like turning into a rabbit?” Taguchi tilts his head in confusion. “That’s not so bad.”   
  
“Like…” Tatsuya begins but stops when his ears pick something up. The others stop as well and Tatsuya hones his attention on a dark spot far in the trees.   
  
“Hide,” he hisses and Kazuya grabs Jin’s hand to pull him behind a tree. Tatsuya turns into a rabbit instead, jumping into Taguchi’s arms as he ducks behind a trunk. Koki and Nakamaru take their own places.   
  
They don’t hear anything at first but soon Jin feels the ground shake. He hears the deep, resounding thud of something enormous, something heavy hitting the forest floor; parting and crushing the leaves, brushing past the trees and cracking branches as it passes.   
  
Nakamaru makes a noise that Koki quickly stifles with his hand over Nakamaru’s mouth. Kazuya’s arm wraps around Jin’s waist as Jin peeks around the tree to see an enormous dark shadow, just barely shorter than the trees and walking through on four legs.   
  
It’s a giant. It’s a wolf. It’s a _giant wolf_.   
  
It’s easily eight feet tall. Its colossal body blocks out the rays of the moon and snaps thick branches in half as it stomps through the forest. Jin sees its red eyes, demonic and devoid of any semblance of humanity as Kazuya pulls him back behind the tree and places a hand over his mouth.   
  
It’s terrifying. When Kazuya and Tatsuya had told him about wolves, he’d assumed the wolves were large but no bigger than him. This—this isn’t a wolf. It’s a monster. An enormous, unstoppable monster that shakes the ground it treads on.   
  
Jin hears it coming closer, feels the trees shaking with each stomp and reaches to grab Kazuya’s hand for comfort. He’s glad Kazuya is covering his mouth because he feels like screaming. If this wolf sees them, he won’t be as lucky as he was with the tengu. It’ll only take two steps for it to reach them no matter how fast they run.   
  
The wolf nears their trees and Kazuya starts pulling Jin around their tree, staying in the dark and out of the sight of the wolf as it brushes past their tree. A branch nearly falls on Jin’s head and he definitely gets the whip of a few leaves that fall on him.   
  
But thankfully, the wolf passes without noticing their presence. Jin watches as it stomps away, its steps fading until he can’t feel the shake of the ground anymore. None of them move until Tatsuya jumps out of Taguchi’s arms and turns back into his human form.   
  
“It’s gone,” he says, voice laced with terror and relief. “For now.”   
  
Kazuya gently lifts his hand from Jin’s mouth. Jin can feel the other and he isn’t shaking; he’s firm, solid, and composed. He turns around and presses a hard kiss to Kazuya’s lips. Half a thank you for silencing him and half because Jin needs his comfort.   
  
“Fuck me…” Koki exhales, he’s still holding Nakamaru up because the other is paralysed with fear and can’t walk anymore. “What the fuck was that?”   
  
“A wolf,” Tatsuya says quietly.   
  
Kazuya pulls back from Jin’s kiss. He holds Jin’s face in his hands and presses another kiss to his forehead before taking his hand.   
  
“Where are we going?” Taguchi asks as the group get back to following Tatsuya. “We’re not going _towards_ those wolves are we?”   
  
“If you wanted to see what’s going wrong with this island, then yes,” Tatsuya turns back to look at Jin and his blue eyes are almost piercing now. “This is where the root of it is.”   
  
Jin is actually scared. If that wolf was only one, then he can’t imagine where Tatsuya is leading him. But this was the point, he’d wanted to see what went wrong with this island, what changed and caused the unrest. This is where he has to go.   
  
He nods and looks around. “Look, guys. Anyone who wants to return to the ship is free to do so, but I need to see this. There is something happening to the other islands—including this one. I have to see if there’s anything I can do to change it or even to just see where it comes from.”   
  
“I’m not leaving you,” Kazuya tells him right away.   
  
“Neither am I,” Tatsuya adds, his eyes turning back to the path he’s walking. “In a way, I kind of need to see this too.”   
  
Koki looks a little conflicted. He turns his gaze to his king. “You know I will never, ever leave you,” he tells Jin and then looks at Nakamaru who’s leaning on him. “But…”   
  
“I’m a doctor,” Nakamaru explains, but he’s visibly shaking at the thought of going anywhere near those wolves. “If any of you idiots hurt yourself, I should be there to help.”   
  
“I’m not leaving,” Taguchi adds with a smile that’s brighter than it ought to be here. “Who knows what valuables I could take from those wolves. Wouldn’t that be a feat?”   
  
It gets Tatsuya to laugh and hit him before the group slowly continue their trek through the woods.   
  
It takes them one hour and, thankfully, they don’t run into anymore wolves in that time. A brilliant blue light slowly filters through the trees, seemingly growing in vibrancy with each step. Eventually, the trees begin to thin out as they reach the edge of the forest and come into view of what appears to be civilization.   
  
Jin looks up at the moons, two of them shining down upon an enormous castle made of stone and light. It stands tall in the middle of sparkling water, rising from the mote with stone and rock. When they first made land, Jin thought it was the moons that cast an eerily beautiful glow upon the castle. Up close, he can tell the castle itself is glowing. The same light he saw in the riverbed seems to pour from the stone. The castle is enthralling.   
  
There is a large bridge between the castle and the village below. Just like the castle, only without the brilliant glow, the village houses are made of rock, stone, and natural elements. It’s almost as if nature carved these structures. Not people.   
  
“When I was here last, the villagers were the only part of the island that felt foreign,” Tatsuya says as they take the gem path towards the village entrance. “Humans. All of them. Not a drop of magical blood.”   
  
“I thought the clock that demanded their lives would put magic in them?” Koki questions.   
  
“It does. But this village area is called the ‘Dead Zone.’ It’s where the island cannot touch it. Thus the humans are safe,” Tatsuya winces. “...Sort of.”   
  
“I wasn’t aware there was a king on the Moon Islands,” Jin comments, glancing at the great wall that surrounds the water the castle sits in.   
  
“There is, but he’s not going to open negotiations with any other island,” Tatsuya explains just as they reach the village. “For starters, he distrusts all outsiders and foreigners. If he could isolate this island, he would. For another thing…” he pauses and looks around at the streets. “He’s not the best creature to negotiate with. He has a heinously short temper.”   
  
The village streets remind Jin of his own. Stone slabs and concrete streets that line the path to the stone and wood houses. Lamps on street corners light the way with a gentle golden glow, but the two moons help light the village clearly enough.   
  
The people who walk the streets look no different than the pirates themselves. They’re human. All of them walking two and fro, going about their daily lives and only glancing at the pirates when they notice that the leather, torn material, and jewellery look strange against their local cotton, nature-themed clothing.   
  
Tatsuya turns to Jin and points down the path to the bridge that leads to the castle ahead. “When I was young, the King was like every other King. Half robot, half human. He had advisors and everything. But the land here...the magic changed him and he became violent.”   
  
Jin glances at the radiant castle. “What happened?”   
  
“He changed,” Tatsuya hums. “Before long, his tantrums and rage began to take hold of him. Turning him into something...different. Something that definitely wasn’t human or robot. There is no democracy here. The people do not get to choose how they are ruled and this king has no advisors anymore. Power here is decided through power alone. Anyone who kills this king will earn the right to become king. Nobody will dare challenge him.”   
  
They stare at the castle. It seems ominous and looming now that they can see it up close. Even the double moons and its own brilliancy do little to stop the giant dark shadow this castle projects over the village it seems to be in charge of.   
  
“You thought that wolf in the forest was huge…” Tatsuya mutters. “The King is bigger. Much, much bigger.”   
  
“The King of the Moon Islands is a wolf?!” Nakamaru chokes with fear, his voice high pitched and squeaky like it gets whenever he’s scared.   
  
“Correct,” Tatsuya replies, voice laced with sadness and regret. “He turned into one when he started killing. He was convinced the advisors were just holding him back, so he killed them and he took over the throne. That is how things work here. For practical purposes, however, the King doesn’t stay a wolf. For the most part, he appears human—until something pisses him off.”   
  
The group looks around the village and, although it’s obviously night, they continue their lives as though it’s day.   
  
“Let’s find a tavern or something,” Koki suggests. “I feel a little out in the open here.”   
  
“There’s an inn.” Tatsuya points at a small building at the corner of the street and starts leading the group to it.   
  
People don’t seem to notice them and those that do don’t really seem to care much. Jin follows Tatsuya into the inn and at least this is something he’s used to. It seems no matter which island he lands in (except Arashi), the inn and tavern are always the same. Same musty scent of wood and fried food coming from the kitchen area; smoke and alcohol. There are people gathered at the tables of the tavern, smoking, drinking, and talking amongst each other.   
  
Kazuya turns to Jin. “How long do you think we’ll be here?”   
  
Jin thinks over it for a moment. He came to the Moon Islands trying to find out the cause for the disturbance here, but he hadn’t thought this island would have a wolf king. The problems here were far deeper than he thought and he hasn’t even begun digging into it yet.   
  
If the Wolf King is as dangerous as Tatsuya says he is, then going after him personally is not the wisest move. Instead, he’d much rather try to find out where Tatsuya’s troubles began and dig his way out from there.   
  
Perhaps he can find a source.   
  
“Hard to say. We need answers and hopefully someone here is able to give them to us,” he tells Kazuya at last.   
  
It’s hard because he doesn’t know what he’s looking for. He didn’t know what he was looking for on Vena Island and he’d found nothing. If anything, what he’s searching for is something abnormal. Something that proves to him that this ‘unrest,’ these changes that Koyama’s been fearing, are caused by something he can track down.   
  
Jin turns to the rest of his crew as Kazuya leaves his side temporarily to scope out the patrons in the bar area.   
  
“A big group attracts attention,” he tells them. “So stay here and rest.”   
  
“While you go off and do something stupid? I don’t think so,” Koki snaps, annoyed that Jin would even consider the idea of him abandoning his own king.   
  
Jin takes a deep breath and shakes his head. “I need you to ask around, talk to the villagers here without making it look like an interrogation. Get opinions on the Wolf King and see if anyone remembers anything about what happened when he changed, see if anyone remembers the advisors. Stuff like that. We can’t stick together, we stick out too much. So Nakamaru, you’re with Koki.”   
  
Nakamaru nods and Jin turns to Tatsuya. “You’re with me. I need your knowledge of this island and Taguchi, you’re with Kame.”   
  
Kazuya comes back just in time and Jin smiles at him. “You’re with Taguchi,” he says. “Poke around, see if you notice anything...weird.”   
  
Taguchi and Kazuya exchange wary glances but neither protest as they disperse, leaving Jin alone with Tatsuya. It’s about then that Jin notices a guy sitting at the bar. He’s wearing a hood over his head and Jin can barely make out his face, but he’s looking at him. He’s looking at both of them.   
  
Tatsuya notices this as well because he elbows Jin’s side.   
  
Against the voice in Jin’s head telling him not to go to this guy, he goes anyway and takes a seat next to him. Tatsuya follows and Jin looks at the stranger. Close up, his face is more visible under the hood. He has short brown hair, light coloured eyes, and a hint of amusement shining on his face. Like he knows a joke Jin doesn’t know.   
  
“You’re not from around here,” the man says.   
  
“Figured that out by yourself, did you?” Tatsuya drawls. It’s kind of obvious by the way they’re dressed that they’re not native.   
  
“But you shouldn’t be here,” the guy continues, seemingly ignoring Tatsuya. “If the King found out about foreigners on his land…” he shivers. “Well, I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong end of that temper.”   
  
“Yes, well, I don’t intend to linger,” Jin promises and he would have left already had he not had the feeling that this guy was after something. “What do you want?”   
  
“I want to help you,” the guy explains. “Foreigners don’t go this deep into the island unless they were after something. Maybe I can help you find it.”   
  
“I doubt that,” Tatsuya mutters but this guy has Jin’s attention now.   
  
“I need to know where these changes began,” he tells the man. “When wolves became the norm because they weren’t always.”   
  
“Correct.” The man nods with a small grin. “Wolves were not the norm. The Moon Island used to be much more peaceful. I may be able to help you.”   
  
Tatsuya nudges Jin’s arm and shakes his head. He’s not impressed and he doesn’t trust him, but Jin can’t really afford not to take this chance. They’re on borrowed time as it is. They need to get off the island before the Wolf King realises they’re there and Jin needs to find answers. He won’t be able to do that stumbling in the dark. He needs the help of someone who’s been living here.   
  
Jin can’t afford to turn this man down.   
  
“How?” he asks and he hears Tatsuya growl next to him but the rabbit stays quiet for the most part.   
  
The man smiles and holds out his hand. “I’m Josh,” he says.   
  
Jin eyes him warily after a moment and slowly takes his hand.   
  
“Jin,” he replies curtly.   
  
Josh grins wide and gets up. “Well, come on then,” he says as he keeps his hood up. “We’ve got a bit of a walk and I don’t think we should waste any time.”   
  
Josh leads the way, but before Jin can follow Tatsuya grabs his arm and stops him.   
  
“Jin,” the rabbit hisses quietly. “I don’t think we should trust him.”   
  
Josh, who thankfully can’t hear them, turns around and raises his eyebrow questioningly. Jin holds up his hand and turns his attention to Tatsuya.   
  
“We don’t have time,” he tells him. “We need to find out where this started and we can’t afford to go searching in the dark.”   
  
“There’s the stuff I know,” Tatsuya reminds him. “I used to live here.”   
  
“Yes, but the island has changed since the Mercury Pirates took you out of here,” Jin argues quietly so Josh can’t hear them. “We don’t have a choice. We can’t be here long, we have to get out of here before the King finds us. We don’t have time, and if this guy can point us out to something...well, then maybe we should trust him.”   
  
Tatsuya glances at Josh who smiles at them both. The rabbit narrows his eyes and thinks it through before sighing in resignation. He lets Jin’s arm go. “Fine,” he concedes. “But I’m not leaving you alone with him.”   
  
“Fair enough.” Jin shrugs and turns back to Josh. “Lead the way.”   
  
Josh walks them out of the village and back out towards the forest. As they enter the trees, the light of the moons and castle fades as it gets darker and darker. Jin struggles to keep up. The forest floor is riddled with overgrown trunks and branches that seem to stick out at every turn. He grabs the hem of Tatsuya’s shirt and stumbles after the two.   
  
“So where are you two from?” Josh asks, oddly conversational despite the horrible terrain they’re walking on.   
  
Jin’s about to answer when Tatsuya beats him to it. “Doesn’t matter,” he tells Josh in a firm voice. “Where are you leading us?”   
  
“I told you. This has a root,” Josh explains lightly. “There’s a place where this all began. Where the cause of the wolves is. If I can help someone bring this to light, then maybe Moon Island stands a chance for being brought back to normal.”   
  
A branch whacks Jin in the face and he yelps. He stumbles after Tatsuya who eventually gets sick of this and crouches down, presenting his back to Jin.   
  
“Get on,” he says.   
  
Jin blinks at him in confusion and Tatsuya grabs his leg. “Get on,” he orders again.   
  
Jin tenderly climbs on Tatsuya’s back and the rabbit hooks his arms under Jin’s knees. He slowly stands and Jin has to grab his shoulders to keep from falling backwards. Tatsuya is strangely solid and strong under him.   
  
Tatsuya continues walking and Jin has to hold on. It’s weird how Tatsuya hasn’t been here in years and yet he can walk around this forest and avoid every single trap there is.   
  
Being carried by Tatsuya is very different to being carried by Kazuya. Of course, the last time Kazuya carried Jin was years ago when they were still children and he was drunk. But he can still vividly remember how solid Kazuya had been. He looked like he could have snapped in half, but his temper and determination had stopped him from being weak.   
  
Instead he’d turned into this little spitfire with a force of aggression stirring in his veins.   
  
Tatsuya, whilst he is firm and there’s no way he’ll ever drop Jin, moves differently. Where Kazuya had carried Jin with every thought to his movements in case Jin ever fell off, Tatsuya seems to trust that Jin will have to hold on tight as he doesn’t adjust his movements to make this easy on Jin.   
  
“It’s just a little further,” Josh assures them. “I’m pretty sure this is the place where the prince found this...thing. Anyway, it changed him.”   
  
“What thing?” Tatsuya questions with a skeptical frown.   
  
“A necklace, I think,” Josh says. “Just a little further!”   
  
Tatsuya adjusts Jin on his back and turns to look at him over his shoulder. “Jin, if this backfires, I’m going to fucking kill him.”   
  
“You need to be more trusting,” Jin whispers.   
  
“You need to be **less** trusting!” Tatsuya counters grumpily.   
  
“There!” Josh says and points ahead.   
  
Jin looks over Tatsuya’s head and spots a ruin that Josh has led them to. It’s not unlike the ruin that Kazuya had taken him to before and the reminder of what they did there makes him blush. Tatsuya stops and lets Jin climb off his back. As Jin gets back onto his feet, he approaches the ruin.   
  
It looks like it could have been a temple once. Now, just a dilapidated structure is left; crumbled by war, age, and neglect. There’s grass and weeds growing around and over the remaining stone structures, so much so the ruins are almost part of nature itself.   
  
But there’s nothing here.   
  
Jin walks ahead with Tatsuya and frowns as he looks around.   
  
“I don’t see anything,” he says. Tatsuya hums his agreement and they both turn to look back at Josh.   
  
They stop. Standing next to Josh and surrounding them on all sides are soldiers from the castle. They turn up from their hiding places and aim guns at them both. Jin’s eyes widen as he watches the guard come up to Josh and nod to him.   
  
“Good find,” he tells Josh. “The King will reward you for this.”   
  
Josh nods and Jin feels betrayed. Tatsuya just growls under his breath and glares at Jin. It’s his fault. He trusted him.   
  
“There are others,” Josh tells the guard. “At the inn.”   
  
“Good,” the guard hums. “Bring them to the castle and the King will reward your loyalty.”   
  
Jin is torn between crippling fear for the rest of his crew, especially Kazuya, and rage that he’s been betrayed so easily. He rounds his eyes on Josh and he wants to wring his neck.   
  
“You slimy little—”   
  
Something hits the back of his head and the last thing he sees is Josh’s fearful face before he hits the ground.   
  
\-   
  
The first thing Jin feels when he wakes up is the damp, cold concrete floor underneath his cheek. He groggily opens his eyes as sound slowly returns to his senses. His head aches. He feels like there is a lump at the back of his head and he wouldn’t be surprised if there really was one.   
  
He hears someone thumping on something wooden and looks up to see Koki running full speed towards a locked wooden door. He thumps his entire body into the door and kicks at it angrily.   
  
“Let us out!” he shouts. “You traitorous bastard! Let us out!”   
  
“Jin,” Kazuya’s voice drifts to him and Jin looks up to see Kazuya leaning over him. His eyes are filled with worry as he helps Jin into a sitting position.   
  
They’re all stuck in what appears to be a concrete cell with one door. Jin can tell from a glance that it’s bolted tightly and they’re not getting out.   
  
“What happened?” he asks.   
  
“You’re an idiot,” Tatsuya snaps from where he’s sitting in the corner of the cell with his knees hunched up and his arms around his legs. “You’re a fucking idiot.”   
  
“Hey, come on now,” Kazuya frowns at the rabbit. “This isn’t Jin’s fault—”   
  
“I TOLD HIM NOT TO TRUST THAT GUY!” Tatsuya shouts and the noise feels like someone driving a spike in Jin’s ears. Jin whimpers and Kazuya kindly puts his hands over Jin’s ears.   
  
Jin can vaguely hear muffled arguing. He watches Kazuya snap something at Tatsuya and when they’re finished Kazuya takes his hands off Jin’s ears.   
  
“For now, we’re stuck here,” Taguchi announces as he goes to sit next to Tatsuya and wrap his arm around his shoulders. “The King knows we’re here.”   
  
“That weirdo sold us out,” Nakamaru adds. “Josh.”   
  
“I’ll tear him a new asshole,” Koki vows as he slams his body against the door again. “I’ll rip his tongue out!”   
  
“Koki stop,” Jin pleads. “Banging into the door isn’t going t—”   
  
“YOU HEAR ME YOU LITTLE SHITS!?” Koki screams, slamming his boot into the door again. “I’LL RIP YOUR FUCKING EYEBALLS OUT OF YOUR SKULLS AND SHIT DOWN YOUR—”   
  
“Koki!” Jin pleads and the tone of his voice is enough to stop him.   
  
Koki grumbles to himself and sits down next to Nakamaru. He folds his arms. “Well, then what the fuck are we going to do?”   
  
“We’re going to negotiate,” Jin rubs his head and feels the back of it. Sure enough, there’s a lump. It’s hot and tender. “I’m the King of the Realm of Mars. It does this King far more harm than good to kill me and my associates. Don’t forget, my kingdom has peace treaties. If he kills me, he’ll have an entire hoard of armies from over ten different kingdoms on his ass and I don’t think he wants that.”   
  
“Nobody ever said the Wolf King was smart,” Tatsuya mutters. “He’s driven by his anger and emotions. He might just welcome the war.”   
  
“If he’s smart, he won’t,” Kazuya adds but he looks worried too.   
  
They look up when the door bursts open and four heavily armed guards stomp in. They aim their guns right at Koki first.   
  
“You,” one of them points to Jin. “The King will see you.”   
  
Kazuya grabs Jin’s hand but they’re not going to get far with this. The guards are already pointing their guns at Koki and they’ll shoot him first if anyone kicks up a fuss.   
  
Jin pushes himself up onto his feet and holds his hands up in surrender. He walks towards the guards and doesn’t fight as one of them grabs him and pushes his hands behind his back.   
  
“Don’t fight,” he warns his crew members as he’s hustled out of the cell.   
  
The guards march him down a series of long hallways. On his way he can see banners depicting a vicious wolf. He can see the crest of the Moon Islands with the writing underneath that says ‘ _aut neca aut necare_ ’ and it’s not entirely comforting to Jin.   
  
He is finally taken into a large throne room—not unlike his own. He spots the King sitting high up in his throne with the guards lining the walls. Jin also notes an absence of advisors. This king doesn’t have any. He sees Josh standing to the side of the King and narrows his eyes as he is pushed onto his knees to bow before the King.   
  
The King himself is a large man with an abundance of long, dark hair that seems to slick back down his neck and stops just under his arms. His clothes are entirely made of fur and probably make him appear bigger than he is. His eyes are dark, hostile slits that narrow when he sees Jin.   
  
Jin lowers his head in respect and the King stands up.   
  
“State your name,” he demands in a low, rough tone. “Intruder.”   
  
Jin lifts his head and looks around. The guards aren’t pointing their guns at him but their hands are still on their weapons. He turns his face to the King and sighs. “Akanishi Jin,” he answers solemnly. “I am the King of the Realm of Mars.”   
  
Josh’s eyes widen in alarm but he’s the only one. The King himself doesn’t seem affected by this news at all.   
  
“Oh?” he hums. “A king, are you?”   
  
Jin swallows hard and forces himself to keep his eyes on this man. As a king he can’t back down.   
  
“Surely you know of my island,” Jin tells him. “The Realm of Mars? My Kingdom is one of the many under the Contract of Peace between all major kingdoms. You kill me, you’ll have the armies of Kanjani, Arashi, Century, Kinki, and a lot of other kingdoms on your shores within days.”   
  
He hopes this news will make the King more receptive towards him, instead it only makes the Wolf King laugh. The soldiers follow suit and Josh is the only one who isn’t laughing. Instead, he is now watching Jin with an odd combination of fear and recognition.   
  
“You think I should fear them?” the Wolf King chuckles. “Your ‘Peace Contract.’”   
  
“It’s not just them,” Jin argues, his tone getting more passionate as he realises he’s not winning this one. “The advisors of each kingdom rule the lands and if they decide—”   
  
“Oh, the advisors,” the Wolf King grins and it’s a terrifying smile. He has sharp, white teeth that seem to glow with his eyes.   
  
Jin hesitates and the Wolf King laughs at him.   
  
“Your beloved advisors,” he mocks. “What would the kingdoms do without the silent advisors standing behind you, whispering in your head like the voice of your conscience?”   
  
Jin frowns. The advisors are a necessity to every kingdom. That’s why they have them. He hasn’t seen a kingdom without advisors until this one.   
  
“I killed mine,” the Wolf King continues, his eyes glowing with hatred and ruthlessness. “My kingdom has never been stronger for it. How liberating it was to finally be rid of the voices in my head.”   
  
Jin stares incredulously at him. The thought of killing his advisors has never even occurred to him, he is already aware this king had done it but still...it’s unthinkable. For as long as he’s been alive, advisors have been the backbone, the spine of the world. Without them, the kingdoms will all fall to chaos—wars amongst each other, peace treaties ended. It would mean the loss of countless lives.   
  
The kings need their advisors. Without them, they turn into this Wolf King; unchecked and powerful, but unstable.   
  
“Tell me,” the Wolf King continues. “This ‘peace treaty’ of yours, would the other kingdoms really avenge you if you were to die?”   
  
“Of course they would,” Jin snaps at him without hesitation.   
  
“How can you be so sure?” the Wolf King asks.   
  
“Without order in this world, there will only be chaos,” Jin continues, certainty rushing through his veins as he glares at the Wolf King. “The advisors are essential.”   
  
“I bet they told you all about me,” the Wolf King smiles and that stops Jin dead in his tracks.   
  
No, the advisors hadn’t told him about the Moon Islands. They hadn’t told him about the wolves taking over or about the virus that spread on Vena Island. The unrest that Koyama was concerned about, the changes that were happening without his notice—the advisors hadn’t told him about any of it.   
  
The Wolf King laughs at his expression and leans back. “What a blind king you are,” he mocks. “Have you any idea what monsters whisper in your head? The destruction they can cause is more than I could ever hope to achieve. You have no idea what these creatures want or what they will do to get it.”   
  
Jin stares at him and finally the Wolf King seems to have lost interest in him. He leans back in his seat and growls. “I have no time for such eyesores anyway,” he declares. “The world is better off without you who abide by the rules of the advisors.”   
  
“Just tell me one thing,” Jin speaks up and this King is definitely frightening. The prospect that this King could turn into one of those wolves, those monstrous creatures, is almost enough to make him shit his pants right then and there. But he needs to understand this. “What happened to you?”   
  
The king looks amused and Jin bravely continues. “Why did you kill your advisors? Where did the wolves come from?”   
  
The Wolf King, for a moment, just stares and Jin wonders if he’s going to be killed. Finally the King sighs and shakes his head. “Don’t you tire of it too?” he asks. “The advisors, their voices in your head? They had to die.”   
  
Jin shakes and stands his ground. “But,” he nearly stutters. “What happened to you?”   
  
The Wolf King raises an eyebrow at Jin. “Why am I a wolf? You mean?”   
  
Jin nods and the King laughs. He spends about a minute or so laughing at him before he finally decides to grace Jin with an answer.   
  
“Poor naive boy,” he taunts. “Don’t you realise what island you’re standing on? This is the Moon Island. The residents of this island, all but the humans in the dead zone, are susceptible to this. Kill and that’s when your true power is unleashed. I was no different.”   
  
Jin’s eyes widen. Killing had brought out this side in the King, it had brought out that side in the rabbits and all other residents of the island who weren’t the humans in the dead zone. Jin distantly realises that if Tatsuya ever killed anyone the same would happen to him.   
  
The Wolf King moves to flick his hand, a sign that the guards have to take him away, when Josh steps forward.   
  
“My Lord, wait,” he pleads.   
  
The Wolf King levels his dangerous eyes on Josh and the other shrinks but doesn’t back down. Josh swallows hard and faces his king. “We may yet have a use for this King,” he says. “He said he is the King of the Realm of Mars. That’s a powerful kingdom.”   
  
“I’m content in my own lands,” the Wolf King grumbles. “Why would I need another one?”   
  
“Because it is powerful and could provide more resources than we have,” Josh tries to reason with him. “Trust me, My Lord. He’s worth more to us alive than dead.”   
  
Jin swallows hard. He’s in a terrible position here. Bargaining any deal with this King would be hazardous to his own lands, but not doing so would probably end with his death and the death of all his pirates. He thinks of Kazuya being executed by this barbarian and steels himself. He has to prevent that from happening and this is his chance here.   
  
The Wolf King glances at him and Jin meets his gaze head on. Jin is actually terrified but he doesn’t let it show and it impresses the Wolf King.   
  
“Alright,” he says at last. “Josh, take the prisoner back to the cell. I’ll think about it.”   
  
Josh smiles in relief and comes down to Jin’s side. He takes his arm as a guard comes along to follow them back. Jin glances at Josh, he actually wants to pull away from him but the guard following close behind them is reminding him that even though Josh is unarmed, the guard is not.   
  
They walk down a few more halls and Jin sees the door to his cell. That’s when he notices Josh move, just out of the corner of his eye. The man slams his elbow into the face of the guard behind them and Jin jumps back in alarm as Josh takes the gun from the guard and smashes the butt of the gun into his face.   
  
The guard slumps unconscious and Josh, wide eyed and panting, turns to Jin. “Let’s get you guys out of here.”   
  
“Wait, what?!” Jin chokes, he watches Josh grab the keys from the guard and stares incredulously. “You’re mad! You think I can trust you after what you did?!”   
  
“Let me put it this way,” Josh huffs, tossing the gun to Jin and fishing the keys out. “I’m the only one who knows all the ways in and out of this castle and we have a very small window of opportunity whilst the King still trusts me. What choice do you have?”   
  
Jin falters. Josh is right. As annoying as that is to admit, he’s right. Josh is their only hope to escape from this castle. Without him, they’re running blind.   
  
Josh unlocks the door and Jin rushes to look over his crewmates.   
  
“Come on,” he says.   
  
They get up and follow him out. Tatsuya takes one look at Josh and slams him into the wall, his hand over Josh’s throat.   
  
“Tatsuya, no!” Jin yelps.   
  
Josh is choking and Tatsuya’s eyes harden in rage.   
  
“Give me one good reason not to rip your throat out,” he hisses dangerously.   
  
“Tatsuya, we need him,” Kazuya tries to reason with him. He puts his hands on Tatsuya’s shoulders as Nakamaru tries to pry Tatsuya’s fingers off Josh’s throat so he can breathe.   
  
“Without him, we’re not going to make it out of here,” Jin points out. “We’ll figure out what to do with him after.”   
  
“We’re going to leave his fucking ass. That’s what we’re going to do,” Tatsuya snarls but he lets go of Josh.   
  
Josh nearly falls to the floor, gasping for breath and coughing madly. Nakamaru rubs his back and Koki looks furious but he understands why they need him.   
  
They wait for Josh to get his breathing back and there are already dark, angry pink marks on his neck. He points down the corridor and rasps. “This way.”   
  
Wary and alert, the group follow Josh down the corridor. They keep their steps silent and their eyes peeled for enemies at every corner. Finally Josh leads them into a room that appears to be a guard room. They spot the guard uniforms on the racks and their eyes widen as they realise Josh’s plan.   
  
“Get dressed. It’ll be easier to get you out if you’re dressed like a guard,” Josh says, his voice croaky and pained.   
  
Kazuya exchanges a wary glance at Jin but the group grabs the uniforms and quickly start stripping. It’s not the first time they’ve had to dress and undress in front of each other, but Jin still can’t help but glance at Kazuya’s body as the other dresses.   
  
“This King has absolutely no taste in clothes,” Koki points out as he pulls the fur lining over his coat.   
  
“The fur probably comes from the wolves he killed,” Tatsuya mutters, sliding the pants on and fixing the helmet to his head. “His enemies.”   
  
“The Moon Islands work on power, it seems,” Nakamaru adds with a distasteful glance at his uniform. “Survival of the fittest.”   
  
They finish dressing and Josh nods. “Okay,” he breathes. “Follow me.”   
  
He leads them out of the guard room and back into the hallways. Josh turns to them. “Line up in twos,” he instructs them. “Walk like a guard and don’t talk.”   
  
“I swear,” Tatsuya hisses. “If this ends with us getting captured again, I will make sure you die first.”   
  
Josh pales a little, but the group line up in twos and they follow him down the hallway. Jin marches next to Kazuya and it’s actually pretty hard to move in this uniform. It’s fur overlapped with steel shielding and plates. The material is so heavy he feels like it’ll drag him down to the ground if he’s not careful.   
  
They pass other guards and, for a moment there, Jin is sure they’re going to notice them. But they don’t and instead they nod and walk past.   
  
“Nice to know the guards don’t recognise their own squad,” Koki mutters quietly.   
  
“They’re not likely to,” Josh explains. “When the King took over, he filled his armies with everyone who would stand for him or who were too afraid to stand against him. As a result, a lot of the guards don’t actually know each other.”   
  
“What a relief,” Tatsuya grumbles.   
  
To Jin’s surprise, Josh actually manages to lead them right out of the castle. They practically walk out of the gates, across the bridge, and back towards the village without incident. It’s about half an hour after they enter the forest, change their clothes, and navigate their way back to the shore that the alarm is finally raised and they turn around to hear a commotion. There’s a horrible wailing of a siren going off in the distance and the barking and howling of wolves to follow.   
  
“Oh, shit,” Josh hisses.   
  
“They found out,” Tatsuya mutters.   
  
“Run!” Jin yelps and the group take off as fast as they can.   
  
They sprint along the forest floor. Tatsuya is faster than them, leading the way through the trees and along the endless, trail-less forest. Jin can see Josh running with them, but he doesn’t have time to worry about that when the howling of wolves gets louder and they can hear the monsters running through the forest after them.   
  
“Run!” Nakamaru squeaks fearfully.   
  
They stumble and rush through trees, overgrown bushes and branches that seem to jump out in front of them. Jin is nearly whacked by an oncoming branch when Kazuya takes his hand and veers him out of the line of fire. Behind them, Jin can hear crunching and crashing of trees as the monsters known as the wolves rush after them. The ground begins to shake under his feet.   
  
Finally, they see the shoreline.   
  
“Get on the boat!” Koki yells as they finally reach the sand and jump into the pinnace together.   
  
Kazuya starts rowing and Tatsuya tries to push Josh out.   
  
“Wait, no!” Josh yells. “Please! Take me with you!”   
  
“No, fucking way,” Tatsuya growls. “You’re fucking lucky I don’t kill you myself.”   
  
“Please!” Josh grabs Jin and Kazuya.   
  
Jin is panicking. They’re not out of the danger zone yet and, although the pinnace is already away from the shore, they need to get to the ship before they can actually be safe. He looks at Josh who is wide-eyed and panting desperately.   
  
“Please!” Josh pleads. “If you leave me on that island, I’ll be killed. The King will realise what I did and he’ll kill me.”   
  
“The King wouldn’t have even known we were here had it not been for you!” Koki snaps at him but Jin is torn. He knows damn well that if he lets Josh go that Josh will die.   
  
“I’ll do anything,” Josh says. “I’ll do anything. Please, don’t leave me here. You don’t know what it’s like!”   
  
Jin looks around at the others and they’re out of time. If they don’t make it to the ship now, nobody will get off this island alive. Finally, Jin takes a deep breath and pulls Josh back onto the pinnace. He turns to Kazuya. “Let’s go.”   
  
Tatsuya and Koki don’t say anything but it’s clear they don’t agree. Taguchi is busy watching the shore and Nakamaru is shaking as the wolves come closer and closer, but they’ll never make it to them. When the pinnace hits the ship, the ladder is brought down and Tatsuya makes Taguchi climb up first.   
  
One by one, they all climb up. Jin goes last and looks over his shoulder to see the monsters themselves out on the shore, red eyes staring at them. The gigantic wolves are out under the moon and they’re terrifying. Enormous, dark creatures that cast shadows wider than the trees they tower over.   
  
Jin climbs up onto the ship and when he reaches the top, the crew members work to bring the pinnace up. Jin lands on the ship deck again and is finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. They’re officially out of the danger, the wolves can’t reach them here.   
  
Koki grabs Josh and puts his hands behind his back.   
  
“Hey!” Josh protests. “What the hell?!”   
  
“Now that we’re out of the danger”—Koki turns Josh towards Jin and keeps his hands back—“what do we do with him?”   
  
“I helped you escape!” Josh points out desperately.   
  
“Yeah, you’re also the reason we were captured in the first place. Forgive me if I don’t trust you,” Koki snaps at him.   
  
Jin sighs in exasperation and looks at Josh. “Look, we only just got off the island—”   
  
“And before we set sail, we should decide how to deal with this shit,” Koki argues. “Decide. What do we do with him?”   
  
“I say we throw him off the ship,” Tatsuya mutters. “Let the wolves and sirens eat him.”   
  
“Please don’t!” Josh cries. “Please!”   
  
“He helped us escape,” Nakamaru argues “He could have let us rot there. He could have left us to the Wolf King. It would have been way easier for him.”   
  
“Nakamaru’s right,” Jin says with a warning glance at Tatsuya “Not to mention that if we let him go now, we are no better than the Wolf King. That is not how justice is handled under my rule and it never will be. Josh is under my custody until I decide what to do with him later.”   
  
Koki and Tatsuya are the ones most put out about the decision, but it speaks well of them and of Jin that neither of them object to his decision.   
  
“So what are we going to do with him?” Taguchi dares to ask with a wary glance at Josh. “We can’t just let him run free on this ship.”   
  
“As much as I agree with your ruling, Jin,” Kazuya pipes up. “This man is on my ship and I’m still the captain. If you’re going to let him live—fine, but he won’t be running free amongst my crew.”   
  
“Lock him in the hold, then,” Jin decides. “We’ll keep him there and I’ll decide how to deal with him when we get back to my land.”   
  
Josh looks relieved even as Koki takes him down to the hold. When they’re gone, Tatsuya shakes his head and stalks off with Taguchi following behind.   
  
Nakamaru turns to Jin. “I think you did the right thing,” he tells him. “That already puts you ahead of many other kings,” he smiles and heads off to see Cookie.   
  
Left with Kazuya, Jin turns to him as the crew finally bring their pinnace up to the deck. His head still hurts and he’s feeling tired. Not just because they’d practically run through the forest in fear of their lives, but also because of what he’d learnt. The Wolf King hadn’t been entirely wrong. He’d been crazy of course, but not wrong.   
  
It’s weird because it kind of goes against everything Jin already knows, everything Jin has been raised and hardwired to believe: That the advisors know all. They are the beginning and end of the world and cannot be questioned.   
  
But what happens if they can be questioned? What happens if they’re wrong? If they’re doing this wrong? What if the kings shouldn’t be answerable to them?   
  
“Take me to bed,” he asks and the pirate captain smiles.   
  
“All hands on deck!” he calls to his crew. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”   
  
The crew, though still obviously not in the right state of mind, seem to be hardwired to obey Kazuya because they shout their agreement and rush to their posts to finally get the ship moving. As they do, Kazuya takes Jin’s hand and squeezes it tightly.   
  
“Come on,” he says gently. “I’ll make sure you get a nice, uninterrupted, long sleep.”   
  
They’re about halfway there when Jin stops in sudden realisation, his eyes growing wide.   
  
“Oh!” he exclaims. “The Luna Sea! As in ‘lunacy!’ I get it!”   
  
Nakamaru and Koki, who just happen to be nearby, turn to stare at him with identical gazes of incredulity.   
  
“YOU _JUST_ GOT THAT NOW?!” They exclaim as they choke on their laughter.   
  
Kazuya cracks up laughing at him and drags him into the sleeping quarters before anyone else can make fun of him.   
  
\-   
  
They’re out to sea, bound for Jin’s kingdom, when something happens. After two days and nights out at sea, Jin is awoken rather violently by the realisation that someone is in bed with him.   
  
Weeks ago, Kazuya had gotten sick of the hammock system and ‘confiscated’ real beds for his crew. This resulted in people still sharing rooms, but this time with a little more comfort. Jin, of course, ended up getting his own room that he often shared with Kazuya—when the other wasn’t out on the deck barking orders.   
  
This time, however, Jin knew he’d gone to bed alone because Kazuya had night duty. So when he wakes up and realises someone is in his bed with him, he knows it isn’t Kazuya.   
  
He turns his head and the first thing he sees in the dim light is a mop of impossibly blonde hair, followed by big eyes and a large smile Jin recognises immediately.   
  
Tegoshi Yuya puts his hand on Jin’s chest and cuddles into his side. “Hello, lover.”   
  
“Fuck!” Jin yelps and jumps back so far he falls off the bed with a loud _THUMP_.   
  
Tegoshi laughs and sits up. “Aww,” he pouts. “No cuddling?”   
  
“What the hell are you doing here?!” Jin gapes, scrambling up to his feet. “How the hell did you get in here?!”   
  
“Duh, ninja,” Tegoshi reminds him with a graceful flick of his hand. He gets up off the bed and approaches Jin. “I have brought you a present. He wishes to talk to you and, since you were sailing past Sunshine Bay, now was the opportune time.”   
  
“That still doesn’t explain how you managed to get in here,” Jin splutters. He’s still half asleep so Tegoshi’s ‘ninja’ excuse isn’t really working for him. “I locked the door.”   
  
“Duh,” Tegoshi repeats himself, poking Jin’s forehead with his index finger. “Ninja.”   
  
Tegoshi gives Jin a moment to get dressed before leading him out of the sleeping quarters and towards the kitchens. When Jin gets there, he finds Kazuya sitting at the table with Yamapi and Ryo. Tegoshi swans in and places himself at the table as Jin stares at them both in surprise.   
  
“Sorry to burst in on you like this,” Yamapi says with an apologetic smile. “But it was a chance we couldn’t miss. The ship was near Sunshine Bay and we rarely get the chance to talk without advisors looking over your shoulder.”   
  
“We figured it was safer,” Ryo adds and nods to Tegoshi. “He helped us get to the ship.”   
  
Jin takes a seat at the table and glances at Kazuya, who simply smiles at him. He turns back to the others. “So...to what do I owe this surprise? I’m not complaining, but usually you’re a lot less secretive about your visits.”   
  
“Koyama was unable to come in person—obviously,” Ryo explains. “With the advisors keeping a close eye on his every move, he is unable to leave so freely. We came with a message from him.”   
  
“Not more stuff about not trusting advisors,” Jin can’t help but groan. “I just met another king who killed his.”   
  
Ryo and Yamapi look surprised and Jin jumps to elaborate. “The Moon Islands has a king and he killed his advisors.”   
  
“That does explain a bit,” Tegoshi hums and he’s the only one who doesn’t look even remotely surprised. Jin wonders how much he actually knows.   
  
“This isn’t about that,” Yamapi says. “But it is about the unrest he’s been concerned about over the last few years. As Spymaster for Sunshine Bay, I felt I would be remiss in my duties if I didn’t tell you about my findings as well. I’ve been hunting down the origins of the virus that appeared on Vena Island some years ago and I think I may have found a lead.”   
  
Kazuya sits up in interest and Jin can’t blame him. That virus killed his father after all. Jin nods to Yamapi and the man continues.   
  
“Have you ever heard of Emerald Grove?” Yamapi asks.   
  
Jin shakes his head. It’s not unusual. In his studies, he was taught about a lot of islands but not all of them. There are a lot of islands the tutors felt he never needed to know about. Emerald Grove is, apparently, one of them.   
  
Jin turns to look at Kazuya. “Do you know about it?”   
  
“There’s a reason why we haven’t sailed there yet,” Kazuya replies, a slight edge to his tone. “Because the ocean surrounding that island is called the ‘Black Seas.’ We’d be insane to go anywhere near it.”   
  
“Unfortunately, your captain is correct,” Ryo shrugs. “The Grove is surrounded by the Black Seas, a stretch of ocean in which nothing lives.”   
  
Jin frowns in confusion and Kazuya looks at him.   
  
“The Black Seas is where nothing lives,” he tells him gently. “Nothing. No ocean life, no fish—no nothing. It’s said to be almost acidic and anyone who so much as touches the water...well, they die. Immediately.”   
  
“The Emerald Grove is also the subject of fantastical tales,” Tegoshi continues. “Almost unbelievable. Only the wildest of travellers talk about it—a grove of your worst fears realised, your walking nightmares. Travellers who reach the Heart of the Grove will then be worthy to find their greatest desires as a reward—if you buy into that bullshit. Usually the sailors who talk about it have had a few by then and they’re mostly drunken rambles.”   
  
“Even drunken rambles have a hint of truth,” Yamapi says. “A root, a source. My research has led to the Emerald Grove. If we go there and survive the trials, we may find what is causing all the unrest. At the very least, an answer would put everyone at ease.”   
  
Jin thinks about it for a moment. His greatest desire. If he wanted to find out the root cause of the unrest, the changes happening, then the Emerald Grove might just provide him with the answer he desperately needs. It’s a risk worth taking because he can’t find answers by playing it safe and letting the advisors decide everything for him. Doing so leaves him blind and Jin doesn’t like the thought of that.   
  
“You’re assuming we survive the trials,” Kazuya points out with a raised eyebrow. “There is a reason why very few people ever reach the Heart of the Grove. It’s because you have to get past what scares you most and it’s not like those fears will show up as apparitions. They’re very real, very dangerous fears.”   
  
“What scares you most, Kamenashi?” Ryo asks and Kazuya glances at Jin.   
  
“...Maybe if we go, we shouldn’t take Jin along,” Kazuya says quietly.   
  
Jin frowns. “Why?”   
  
“Because you’ll die,” Kazuya explains and he’s awfully calm and quiet about it, his eyes watching Jin with a softness Jin rarely sees. “That’s my fear.”   
  
Ryo looks between the two of them and shrugs. “Well, if Jin dies in the Grove, then maybe he’ll be brought back to life when we reach the Heart.”   
  
“I’m not taking that chance,” Kazuya snaps at him. “That’s what you two came here for, isn’t it? To ask the Mercury Pirates to follow up on this lead of yours and go to the Emerald Grove.”   
  
“Yes, but also to take us along as delegates of Koyama’s,” Yamapi says. “He wants answers for his kingdom as well and we cannot go alone. If we take a ship from Sunshine Bay, the advisors will know. If we simply go with the Mercury Pirates, the advisors won’t know shit. Especially about where we’re going.”   
  
Kazuya doesn’t seem keen at all, but Jin’s already thinking about it. Koyama wants answers but Jin wants them as well. He wants to know, to find out once and for all who their real enemy is and if he should suspect the advisors at all. He needs to know if what the Wolf King said about the advisors being the real monsters is true. It disturbed Jin then on the Moon Islands and it continues to now. To finally know the truth of the matter would be a blessing.   
  
“There’s a lot more than just fear and desire on that island,” Kazuya points out heatedly. “There’s trials. There are things you have to go through to get to the Heart. It’s not as simple as you’re making it out to be.”   
  
“But it might be worth it,” Jin finally speaks quietly. “If we find answers.”   
  
Kazuya goes quiet and Yamapi’s eyes widen hopefully.   
  
“You’ll do it?” he asks. “You’ll take us with you?”   
  
“Yes,” Jin decides. “The risk is worth it and I want answers. For now, we are heading back home because the advisors will notice me missing for too long, but on the next trip we’ll go there and take you with us.”   
  
Kazuya doesn’t say a word but he’s watching Jin. Tegoshi looks over them and makes a point of sighing heavily as he gets up to his feet.   
  
“Well,” he says. “The night is getting later and we need to return to Koyama soon with the good news,” he turns to look at Ryo and Yamapi. “Let’s leave these pirates alone.”   
  
“We’ll be in touch,” Yamapi promises as he gets up and bows slightly to Jin. “Thank you.”   
  
Ryo grins. He nods to Jin and the two follow Tegoshi out of the room. When they’re gone, Jin looks at Kazuya. The pirate captain is not just worried, there’s another emotion boiling behind his eyes and Jin can’t read it so easily. He tilts his head and leans in.   
  
“Kame…”   
  
“No,” Kazuya says and his voice is firm, decisive, even a little scary. He turns to Jin and shakes his head. “No. I’m not going through this again. I’m not staying on this ship whilst you go onto an island I know is dangerous. I’m not doing it.”   
  
“Kame,” Jin feels exasperation building up, he needs to make Kazuya stay on this ship. He needs to make him understand this has to be done.   
  
“No!” Kazuya snaps and pulls his hand away before Jin can take it and try to calm him down. He gets up from the table and backs away. “When this ship landed on the island that killed my father, I stayed on board because he said it was dangerous. I waited, hours and hours for the crew to return, and when they finally did come back, they were carrying my unconscious and dying father. So don’t tell me you know what’s best here, I’m not going through that again!”   
  
“Kame, this is not the same,” Jin stands and follows Kazuya, his hands out in peace; trying to make himself understood. “I have to do this. If the world is changing and my advisors are in on it, I have to know. I have to find answers.”   
  
“By going to a known dangerous island on the off chance you’ll survive the payment you need to make in order to get your answers?!” Kazuya snaps at him, dodging Jin’s arms as he skirts around the table. “You’re taking the easy way out!”   
  
“How is this venture, in any way, going to be easy?!” Jin finally raises his voice a little. “What other choice do we have?! It’s killing me that I suspect my own advisors! I am programmed not to! Suspecting them is painful to me, I need to know. I _have_ to know if they’re going to hurt me!”   
  
“The Emerald Grove will kill you!” Kazuya screams at him. “Don’t you get it?! You’ll get your answers but you’ll pay a price. Everyone has to pay and, quite often, the payment is never worth the reward!”   
  
Jin sighs. “You’re not going to win this one,” he points out, almost calmly but there’s a shake in his voice. “You’re not going onto this island with me—I can’t risk you. If I have to lock you in the hull, I will, but you are staying on this ship and I will go onto Emerald Grove.”   
  
Kazuya’s eyes narrow dangerously, he stops trying to avoid Jin and glares at him instead. “Are you threatening me on my own ship?”   
  
“This is the one time I am going to pull rank on you,” Jin replies firmly. “You are the captain of the Mercury Pirates and I love you. More than I love anything, even my own realm, which is forbidden of a king, but there it is. However, if you dare, _if you dare_ , follow me onto that island, try to stop me, or anything like that, I will lock you up until I return. You may be the captain, but I am your _King_.”   
  
Kazuya stares at him incredulously. Jin can read it quite clearly in his eyes that Kazuya is shocked speechless, he never thought Jin would pull rank on him like that. It was a dangerous move to be sure. Kamenashi Kazuya, despite still being a subject of Jin’s law, was still a very lethal person to fuck with and this was a difficult card Jin was pulling.   
  
Because he wasn’t just pulling rank on anyone, he was pulling rank on the one person who could severely make him suffer for it. No matter how much authority Jin technically had over Kazuya, he’d never had to pull it like this before. Kazuya had the power to make him truly regret going this far, but Jin couldn’t risk it.   
  
Jin catches Kazuya’s hand a split second before it can hit him in the face. Kazuya rounds with another hit to his side and Jin hisses. He twists the wrist he has in his grip and hears Kazuya grunt in pain as he turns the other around and pins him, chest first, onto the table. Jin leans over him and uses his own weight to pin Kazuya onto the wood of the table.   
  
“Come on, King of Pirates,” Kazuya hisses. “You’re not winning this one. I’m not losing you. I’m not doing that again.”   
  
“You don’t have a choice,” Jin reminds him and grunts in pain when Kazuya’s foot shoots up to hit him right between the legs. The force knocks the air from Jin’s lungs and he lets the other go, only for Kazuya to push him off and shove him back into a wall. Kazuya grabs the scruff of his shirt and leans in, hideously angry.   
  
“Tell Koyama, tell Yamashita, tell everyone to go fuck themselves. This is my ship. I’m the one who decides where it goes and I’m not sending you to your death,” Kazuya demands. “I won’t stay on the ship while you—”   
  
“I need answers,” Jin tries one more time. This time it’s not anger in his voice and it’s not determination, it’s desperation.   
  
His tone stops Kazuya in his tracks and Jin stares at him pleadingly. “Kazuya, it’s not about me and it’s not about you. It’s about everything. Everything we’ve seen up until now—all the mysteries of the world we’ve seen. Yet, the mystery at home is the one I can’t figure out. Kazuya please. I need this.”   
  
For a moment, Kazuya looks like he’s going to hit Jin again but he doesn’t. Instead his grip on Jin’s shirt loosens a little and he looks almost lost.   
  
“This...this is really important to you isn’t it?” he breathes. He sounds almost confused. He stares at Jin and frowns. “You really need to know what the advisors are, don’t you?”   
  
“I am programmed to obey,” Jin tells him. “I’m programmed to do whatever they say and obey. I’ve been a good king, but I need to know if they’re going to be the end of me. Of everything. I need to know if they’re really on my side or if Koyama’s onto something.”   
  
Kazuya looks like he wants to fight, he looks like he wants to keep Jin down by sheer force of will if physical violence won’t help. Instead, his grip on Jin’s shirt loosens completely and he lets him go. For a moment, he just looks lost.   
  
“Kame,” Jin reaches for him and Kazuya steps out of his grasp. He shakes his head.   
  
“I won’t stop you,” he tells Jin. “If you really want to risk your life for this cause….then I can’t stop you. You’ll find another way to do it.”   
  
He’s not wrong there. If the Mercury Pirates and Kazuya wasn’t an option, Jin would find another way to get his answers. He has to. He has to know.   
  
He reaches for Kazuya again and the pirate captain steps out of his grasp once more.   
  
“No,” Kazuya holds his hand up. “You know where I stand with this one, Jin. You’re going to make me sit on the ship again and wait for you to come back to me. Dead or alive.”   
  
“I won’t die,” Jin tries to promise but he can’t promise it. He doesn’t know the price he has to pay for the information he needs.   
  
Kazuya shakes his head and for a moment, Jin thinks he’s about to cry. He watches Kazuya leave the room and Jin knows better than to follow him.   
  
Kazuya takes over the lookout post, snapping at anyone who tries to climb up there to talk to him. He stays up there the whole way home and, when they finally hit land, Kazuya doesn’t speak to Jin at all.   
  
All Jin can think about are the words of the Wolf King and, as much as Kazuya’s silence hurts, he has to do this. He has to know.   
  
“ _Have you any idea what monsters whisper in your head? The destruction they can cause is more than I could ever hope to achieve. You have no idea what these creatures want or what they will do to get it._ ”   
  
It puts Jin on edge. Although the Wolf King is far behind them now, Jin can’t help but feel the truth of his words and he can’t relax. Not whilst he knows something—somewhere in his head and in this entire system—something is wrong.   
  
\-   
  
Jin takes Josh with him back to the castle. The Mercury Pirates regroup and recover in the tavern whilst Koki follows Jin back. With the advisors behind him once more, Jin feels the unsettling feeling of their voices in his head. It’s odd how he’s had his entire life to get used to this feeling and yet he still can’t do it.   
  
He doubts any king really gets used to it.   
  
Jin sits upon his throne with Koki sitting on the steps as usual. Before them, Josh is trembling in irons the stupid dock guards had insisted on putting on him. There’s no point in that, Josh may be quick with his words but it’s not like he’s going to be able to fight anyone off—or run when he knows both Tatsuya and Koki would kill him before he even reaches the harbour.   
  
Jin looks over him and tilts his head. “Josh…” he falters and clears his throat. “Do you have a last name?”   
  
“I might have...once,” Josh shrugs timidly.   
  
Jin frowns. “You don’t remember?”   
  
“‘ _Happy is the Kingdom with no past_ ,’” Josh explains. “The Wolf King erased most of our memories. Most. The spell didn’t work entirely. I still remember that he wasn’t always a wolf and that things weren’t supposed to be this way.”   
  
“How convenient,” Koki drawls, still unimpressed. “You forget your family name, but not your given.”   
  
Jin doesn’t see how it benefits Josh at all to lie so he lets it go and shrugs. “You are charged with deceiving us and leading us straight to the Wolf King of the Moon Islands. You led us into his trap, and because of you we were all captured and the Wolf King was made aware of our presence. Do you have anything to say in your defence?”   
  
“I have plenty of things to say in my defence!” Josh argues fiercely. “First of all, I was hired as a spy for the King. If I hadn’t brought you lot in, he’d have tortured and killed me. Secondly, he was already aware of your presence because the tengu were out looking for you. Do you really think they wouldn’t have reported intruders to the King?”   
  
Koki huffs but Jin thinks he has a point.   
  
“Thirdly, I may have been the reason you were captured, but I was also the reason you all got out and off the island—alive and in one piece. Doesn’t one act of selflessness overwrite the deceit?” Josh asks, eyes wide and almost desperate. “I acted out of fear, but I saved you because I knew it was right.”   
  
“Don’t act like you saved us because you knew it was right,” Koki snarls. “I know your kind. You snuggled up to the Wolf King because he was powerful and safe, and now you’re snuggling up to His Majesty because he’s powerful and even safer. Your employ as the Spy of the Wolf King was voluntary. Not forced.”   
  
“You don’t understand what it’s like living on that island, obeying the Wolf King,” Josh retorts passionately. “He’s a monster. Anyone who goes against him will die and I had family to look after. I gained employ with him because I needed the money to support my sisters. I did what I had to. But Akanishi Jin is the King of the Realm of Mars. I knew an open war wasn’t wise. I chose a side and got you out. If you’d have left me on that island, the Wolf King would have swallowed me whole.”   
  
Jin listens to the advisors whispering in his head and it’s interesting what they have to say about Josh. It’s the first time the advisors have been so divided on a ruling. Usually, they’re unanimous in how they deal with people who cross their king, but this time they’re split in half. Half of them want Josh killed for his crime, the other half want to keep him and use him.   
  
“Koki,” Jin finally says. “Take Josh into the next room with the guards and leave me for a bit. I need to convene with my advisors.”   
  
Koki looks over his shoulders at the faceless advisors and nods. “As you wish, Your Majesty,” he says and nods to the guards who take Josh with him out of the throne room.   
  
When they’re gone, Jin leans back in the throne and closes his eyes.   
  
“Tell me why you didn’t warn me about the Wolf King on the Moon Islands,” he asks of his advisors. “Surely you knew about him.”   
  
They all whisper at once and it’s hard to make out what they’re saying. Jin’s never seen his advisors so out of sync before and he stands up. He turns around to face them and holds up his hands.   
  
“One at a time. I only have one head,” he says and looks around them. “Explain. Why didn’t I need to know about the Wolf King?”   
  
They explain that the Wolf King was not part of their world. As he had killed his advisors, they were devoid of any means of communication to him. Not only that, but the Wolf King also ensured the Moon Islands were a black spot on the Earth for all advisors by allowing the magic to cut them off.   
  
“Okay,” Jin sighs. “Then why do half of you want Josh dead and the other half want him alive? I’ve never seen you all so divided before.”   
  
They tell him Josh, as a Moon Islands citizen who has seen the destruction first hand, is a dangerous ally to have. His presence in a seat of power could anger the Moon Islands. The other half tell him that is exactly why he should keep Josh close—knowledge of an island they have no access to is valuable.   
  
Either way, it hurts Jin’s head and he covers his face with his hands for a moment.   
  
“Then what do I do?” he asks.   
  
They don’t say anything and that is his answer.   
  
“Bring the prisoner back in,” Jin orders and turns to see Koki and the guards bringing Josh back to him. Jin goes to sit on his throne once more and watches Josh.   
  
He doesn’t see Josh as a threat. In fact, if the Wolf King had used him as a spy, then he’s probably a pretty good one. Jin can’t see anything threatening about him. Maybe that’s what makes him so dangerous? Either way, half of his advisors are right. This is a useful ally to have, especially where it concerns an out of control king on the Moon Islands.   
  
“Josh, you are to be released,” Jin informs him. “But under guard. You will remain in my company and under my watch until such time I grow to trust you and integrate you into my kingdom as one of my own citizens.”   
  
Koki’s eyes are wide and it’s clear he does not approve, but he also says nothing.   
  
Josh moves to bow as much as he can whilst still chained up. His head bows and he sighs in relief.   
  
“Thank you, My Lord,” he cries. “Thank you!”   
  
Koki shakes his head and Jin shoots him an apologetic smile. It’s the best he can do.   
  
The advisors whisper in his head again and Jin flicks his wrist, wordlessly telling the guards to get Josh out of his chains. Now that he’s back in his kingdom, he has a lot of ‘kingly’ duties to do and none of them involve spending more time with the Mercury Pirates...unfortunately.   
  
Much to Koki’s annoyance, Josh sticks around. Over the next few weeks, Josh—under Jin’s orders—stays close as an unofficial part of his court. He provides information to the advisors, through Jin, about the Moon Islands and most of it is pretty helpful. What Josh does remember helps the advisors understand what had gone wrong and where the Wolf King had snapped.   
  
It helps them find out where the advisors on the Moon Islands had gone wrong, and take measures in their own kingdom to make sure the same does not happen to them.   
  
With the exception of Kazuya’s continued silence and avoidance, things go back to normal. When Jin gets news that Yamapi and Ryo will be available for the trip to the Emerald Grove in two weeks, he misses the way the advisors look at each other—eyes shifting from one to another as they observe their pirate king.   
  
Jin doesn’t realise something is already in motion.   
  
\-   
  
When one hears the name ‘The Black Seas,’ one might think of waters that are literally black. However, that’s not what Jin sees as the Mercury Pirates finally anchor to a stop a safe distance from the Emerald Grove. Jin peers over the side of the ship and instead of seeing black waters, what he sees are unnaturally blue and sparkling waters. A light blue and pretty, almost as though there were a million lights underneath the water. In a way it reminds him of the water he saw in the river on the Moon Islands, only this is far more captivating.   
  
And still. Despite feeling the wind on his face the sails use to get this far, the Black Seas are at dead calm.   
  
“Pretty,” Tatsuya comments as he leans over the side of the ship. “Anything that looks that pretty has to be dangerous.”   
  
Taguchi nods. “I feel an almost unnatural need to lean in and jump.”   
  
“Don’t touch the water,” Ryo says, his arm slinging around Tatsuya’s middle. “One touch and you’re done for. People don’t come back from that.”   
  
The pirates exchange wary looks at each other and Jin turns to Kazuya. The other hasn’t talked to him since their argument. He’d avoided him the entire time they were on land and, when they’d taken the ship here, Kazuya had stayed in the lookout avoiding Jin and everyone else.   
  
But now that they’re here, looking at the island, he is here; right by Jin’s side.   
  
Jin ignores the others readying the rowboat and turns to take Kazuya’s hands in his own. He squeezes them and meets his eyes. “I don’t expect you to be alright with this. Not after what happened with your father. But if this goes wrong, if this really is the last time we talk, don’t leave me with your silence.”   
  
Kazuya doesn’t let go of his hands which is a very good first sign. The other watches him silently and eventually takes a deep breath. He leans in and presses a kiss to Jin’s lips. Soft at first but it soon becomes firmer, his hand coming up to hold the back of Jin’s head. Jin throws his arms around Kazuya’s waist and draws him closer.   
  
They kiss until they need to breathe again and when they pull apart, it’s only inches away. They rest their foreheads against each others and pant a little. Kazuya’s fingers are still deep in his hair.   
  
“I swear,” Kazuya breathes .“If you don’t come back to me, I will find you, drag your ass back to my ship, and bring you back to life so I can kill you myself.”   
  
Jin laughs, he can feel Kazuya trembling in his arms and nods. “I’d expect no less of you.”   
  
“I’m serious,” Kazuya tells him. “I’m not going to go through this again. Come back to me. Alive. Don’t you ever pull rank on me ever again, Akanishi Jin.”   
  
“I promise,” Jin whispers. He kisses Kazuya’s forehead and feels the pirate pull him into another much needed kiss.   
  
“So who’s actually coming with us?” Yamapi asks as he climbs onto the pinnace and looks around. “Whoever is, think of your greatest fear. If your fear involves someone dying then that someone has to stay on the ship.”   
  
Tatsuya winces and turns to Taguchi. “Stay on the ship,” he tells him quietly.   
  
“What?” Ryo chokes. “Your fear is _him_ dying and not me?!”   
  
“You’re a switch,” Tatsuya reminds him with a small smirk as he climbs onto the pinnace with Yamapi. “You’ll come back.”   
  
Taguchi steps back and he seems kind of half-touched and half taken aback by the sudden confession. Jin smirks at Ryo, who just looks put out and shoots a small smile at Kazuya as he climbs onto the pinnace.   
  
Given the island they’re about to approach and the sea that would most certainly kill them if they so much as touched it, he’s glad he left Josh behind with the advisors. He’s safer there. Jin’s the only one who trusts him and he fears what the Mercury Pirates could have done with Josh if they’d been left alone with him.   
  
They’re only going as a group of four. Jin, Yamapi, Ryo and Tatsuya. Each of them have their own questions they have to find out, each are willing to pay a high price for the answers. Tatsuya and Yamapi start lowering the pinnace once they’re all in.   
  
“Remember,” Kazuya calls as he leans over the side of the ship and watches them lower. “Don’t touch the water!”   
  
Tatsuya watches Taguchi, who stays next to Kazuya. He doesn’t say anything, but then it’s not in his nature to. Next to him, Ryo watches him warily but he doesn’t say anything either.   
  
They all hold on when the pinnace finally hits the water with a rough splash, but the water quickly settles back into its sparkling glasslike surface.   
  
All of them make sure not to touch a drop of the suspiciously bright blue liquid as Tatsuya and Yamapi work on rowing the lot of them towards the shore and away from the ship. As they move, Jin watches Kazuya still on the ship. The younger is worried and it’s all over his face. Jin offers a small wave, but it does nothing to ease either of them and he keeps watching until the pinnace hits the shore.   
  
“Alright,” Yamapi says as he climbs out with the group. “Remember the rules. This is the Emerald Grove, the forest of pure nightmares and fear.”   
  
“No splitting up under any circumstances,” Jin warns his crew. “I know we had to split up on the Moon Islands, but this isn’t like that. Chances are, the Grove knows why we’re here. We must pay a price for what we want. That price is decided by the island.”   
  
Ryo glances worriedly at Tatsuya and it’s clear on his face he’s not sure if Tatsuya should even be there. Tatsuya may not have been too concerned about Ryo dying, but Ryo was certainly scared of Tatsuya dying.   
  
The group walk ahead and the grove—whilst appearing almost harmless from a safe distance—has a sinister air to it. Like a fog that settles over them the deeper they get. The forest grows darker and darker as the trees cluster close to each other, branches and thick leaves blocking out the sunlight, leaving only darkness.   
  
As they walk, Jin can swear he feels eyes on him but he doesn’t know where those eyes are coming from. He can see red dots out of the corner of his eye. Like the red eyes of a monster, but when he looks the red is gone.   
  
Yamapi is walking in front of him, Ryo and Tatsuya are behind him. They walk on and in the thirty minutes they walk, the forest becomes an oppressive, smothering black. This time it isn’t because the sunlight is not piercing through the trees. It’s something else. Something is settling over them, silently robbing them of their light, their sight, and their surroundings.   
  
“Hey,” Jin hears Yamapi speak. “Are you guys still there? I can’t see shit.”   
  
“Tatsuya?” Ryo calls and Jin tries to look back but it’s so pitch-black he can’t even see his hand out in front of himself, let alone the others.   
  
A cold snap comes out of nowhere. It makes Jin shiver. He closes his eyes and hears Yamapi’s and Ryo’s voices fade. Like he’s going deaf. Another cold gust of wind envelops him. It pierces his body and Jin shivers so hard he nearly falls to his knees.   
  
“Guys!” he calls. No one answers.   
  
“Pi? Ryo?” he tries. “...Tatsuya?”   
  
No sound. No sight. Jin can’t feel his fingers or his feet. He starts feeling scared and he wants to run but he can’t see, can’t move. Oh. Were they wrong? All they’d heard of the island was from high stories, tales told by mostly drunk sailors who’d sworn they’d survived the trials—and evidently lost their sanity as the cost.   
  
But was it wrong? Were they really on an island that was always going to kill them? Had they believed the tales and walked onto an island that was really just as poisonous as Vena?   
  
“Kazuya,” Jin pants and falls to his knees. He tries to blink his eyes, tries to make out the area around him at least a little, give himself a fighting chance. An inky fog descends upon him, burning his eyes and nose not unlike the heavy fumes of something burning.   
  
Kazuya would kill him if he went and died here.   
  
For the first few minutes, Jin can’t see anything. His sight is so blurry, he can’t even make out his hands right in front of his face. But when the stinging subsides and his sight is returned to him, Jin isn’t in the forest anymore.   
  
There’s a small fire burning next to him. A small, deliberately placed pyramid of logs and twigs sit in a pile, burning harmlessly. Jin can see his breath and looks around to see only fog and smoke around him. He doesn’t even know when the skies got so dark. Jin looks around but no one is near him.   
  
“Guys?” he calls, slowly getting up onto his feet. There are other fires burning away but his crewmates are nowhere to be seen.   
  
“Tatsuya?!” he shouts. “Pi?! Ryo?!”   
  
No answer. Jin shivers and looks all around him, he sees nothing but dark fog.   
  
Suddenly, the snap of a twig ahead of him makes him jump. Jin watches as a figure appears from the darkness and stops just in front of the light of the fire.   
  
It’s a woman. At least, it seems to be one. Jin can tell by the hair and the body, but her head is covered with a mask that almost looks metallic. It covers her face, leaving only her eyes visible as the nose of the mask winds down into a wide and almost fox-like nose. The mask spirals over her forehead, leaving two ears atop her head. Long tendrils of black, wavy hair are left spiralling down her shoulder from under the mask.   
  
She wears only a white button up shirt and short black pants which are easily hidden under the hem of the shirt; leaving long, slender, bare legs underneath.   
  
Gracefully, she sits on what appears to be nothing. It’s as if she’s floating on air but she’s sitting on something. She pulls her knees up casually to her chin and watches Jin curiously through the mask.   
  
_Akanishi Jin_ , he hears her voice in his head. Like an advisor, but not quite as lifeless as one. There’s a spark of life, of personality, in her tone that sets her apart. But she speaks in his head, not with her mouth.   
  
_You’re taller than I thought you’d be._   
  
Jin looks around but he still can’t see his crew. He turns his eyes back to the woman and sighs. “And...you are?”   
  
_You came looking for me and you don’t know who I am? I’m the guardian of the Emerald Graves. Goddess of the Unknown. The All-Seeing Eye. Feared and loved by many, I am a nightmare and a dream. A plague and a blessing. I am whatever you want me to be._   
  
Jin raises an eyebrow and the goddess tilts her head. _For simplicity, if you prefer, you can call me Indila. I understand you humans and your need to name things in order to create some order._   
  
“I’m a king,” Jin reminds her. “I’m only half-human.”   
  
_Do not speak lies you yourself cannot believe. You know you are much more human than your advisors realise. A king who can love. If they ever knew…_   
  
Jin’s eyes widen and the goddess languidly stretches her long legs out in front of herself. He feels a power coming from her and knows instinctively she is far more powerful than she is showing right now. There’s a familiarity in hearing her voice in his head but Jin is all too aware that she is watching, judging him, and she has the power to snap him like a twig should he do something that displeases her.   
  
“I’ve come here for a reason,” he tries to hide the quiver in his voice and maintains a respectful tone. “I need to know…”   
  
_Ah, yes. Your advisors. Your suspicion against them._   
  
“They are not telling me everything,” Jin tells her. “I know what they would do if they ever found out I’m not the king they want me to be. But there has never been a king who was taken off the throne by his own advisors. It has never happened.”   
  
_Just because it has never happened does not mean it is not possible_ , Indila reminds him. _Remember, the advisors hold ultimate power. They are the real force and power behind their puppet kings. You are right to fear them._   
  
Jin frowns. “So...they are against me?”   
  
Indila doesn’t reply then. She studies him a little longer and Jin can barely see a hint of red in her eyes behind that mask of hers and it’s a little unsettling.   
  
That is the wrong question, she finally tells him. _What you really want to know is whether or not your advisors are hiding anything from you. Whether they can be trusted._   
  
Jin nods. He needs to know. He feels this need deep within himself and it’s actually not asking for the truth, it’s begging for the peace of mind he once had. To be able to trust in his own advisors and be a normal king again. This suspicion is hurting him.   
  
Indila walks towards him. Jin watches as she stops in front of him and lifts her hand, hovering just over his chest but not touching him yet.   
  
_There is a price to pay_ , she reminds him. _Will you pay?_   
  
Jin eyes her hand, he doesn’t dare back off. He needs to know. “What is your payment?” he asks, unable to hide the slightest fear in his voice.   
  
She shakes her head. _Will you pay or not?_ She asks. She’s not going to tell him.   
  
Jin looks at her hand again and shakes his head. He hopes this doesn’t kill him.   
  
“Yes,” he breathes and almost immediately, Indila places her hand on his chest.   
  
A bright light comes from her hand shooting into his chest, right through all his nerves, causing the sharpest spike of pain that Jin gasps and closes his eyes. It shoots through his hands, his chest, his legs, his feet, his neck, and his head. Circling around his brain, frying every vein, nerve, and circuit on its way.   
  
The sharp spike is followed by a dull, throbbing pain when Indila takes her hand off him. Jin pants as he opens his eyes and touches his chest. It’s warm. He turns to her.   
  
“What did you do?” he asks. Did she take something? Did she give something?   
  
Indila does not reply and instead returns to the nothing she was sitting on before. She turns to him, calmly and slowly and nods.   
  
_Your answer is that your advisors have not changed. Not since the beginning of time. They run your land and you with the clear purpose of peace between the realms. That is all._   
  
It’s a little comforting, but Jin needs to know much more than that. He shakes his head. “Tell me more. Why aren’t they telling me things? Why didn’t they tell me about the Wolf King? Why is Koyama so suspicious of his own advisors? Is he seeing problems where there are none?”   
  
_Your advisors decided you did not need to know about the Wolf King. It’s true. Until you went looking for him yourself, you did not know about him and he did not affect the peace treaty. Koyama’s suspicion is raised from his advisors. They are ten times more critical of him than yours are of you. Remember, all advisors look and function in the same way. But on each realm, on each island, they are different in how they rule their kings. Your advisors are not Koyama’s advisors. As for the happenings on islands such as Vena and the wolves on the Moon Islands, they were always going to happen. Natural occurrences in lands as strange as those are normal. Wouldn’t you find it odd that a strange island like Vena, with different coloured grass and water, wouldn’t have parasites that are dangerous to outsiders? Do you really find it so strange that a magical land like the Moon Islands would have something so unexplainable as giant wolves?_   
  
Jin feels something in him calm. If his advisors hadn’t been the ones to change, if they had only been looking out for protecting peace between the lands, then they would lose it all by betraying him.   
  
It meant he could trust them.   
  
“Then…” Jin feels a knot in his chest loosen at the thought. “The advisors...are on my side? I can trust them?”   
  
_They have not changed_ , Indila corrects him. _It is you who changed_.   
  
Still, Jin feels relief pouring through them. He can go back to being who he was. To being normal. To not wondering if the silent advisors behind him are going to kill him one day. It feels wonderful not to go against his programming to suspect them.   
  
He takes a deep breath and Indila, sensing her purpose is over as he has already paid his price, begins to fade within his sight. Jin’s senses blur again and, as she and the land around him disappears from his sight, he feels a calm wash over him. He has his answer and it’s one his programming can agree with.   
  
Jin opens his eyes again and the daylight is shining through the trees. They’re back in the grove and his crew are crouched around him. Jin sits up and looks around, he’s right where they all were before their eyes started blurring. He looks at his crew around him and turns his eyes to Yamapi. “Survived the trials?”   
  
“In our own way,” Yamapi explains tiredly. “We were all separated, you’re the last to come back. Did you get the answer you were looking for?”   
  
Jin can still feel a burn. He pulls his collar down and glances at the fresh, black barcode burnt into his skin. The only proof that any of that ever happened. He still doesn’t know what his price had been.   
  
“Yes,” he smiles in relief. “We’re done here.”   
  
Jin feels a rush of relief and safety when his feet once again land on the creaky wooden deck of the ship. The second he lands, he feels Kazuya’s arms wrap so tightly around him it’s a wonder he can still breathe.   
  
“You came back,” Kazuya whispers into his ear. Jin wants to kiss him, but they can’t linger here.   
  
“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” he suggests, to which the others voice their sounds of agreement.   
  
“Cookie!” Kazuya barks. “Anything in our way?”   
  
“Nothin’ but clear skies!” Cookie shouts back. “On our way captain!”   
  
Kazuya gives out orders and Jin can’t help but smile at the sight of him. He’s the skinniest, tiniest pirate captain ever, and yet he’s still quite amazing. The power he exerts is incredible.   
  
To Jin, he’s always been amazing.   
  
Kazuya turns around and is met with Jin’s lips. He falls into him and Jin wraps both his arms around him. He picks him up and Kazuya laughs.   
  
“I can walk!” he points out as Jin starts kissing at his neck and carrying him back inside.   
  
“No, you can’t,” Jin mumbles. “Besides, why use your legs when you have me to carry you around everywhere?”   
  
Kazuya laughs loudly but before Jin can carry him away he turns to the crew.   
  
“Cookie!” he shouts. “You’re in charge until I get back!”   
  
“Git goin’ already,” Cookie waves them off, watching as Jin drags Kazuya inside and closes the door behind them. The lookout turns his eyes back to the sea and leans back in his seat with a satisfied smile.   
  
\-   
  
The pirates sail towards Sunshine Bay first to drop Ryo and Yamapi off. As the ship approaches the docks, Jin goes to the front deck to stand with Yamapi.   
  
“You ready?” he asks.   
  
Yamapi huffs and shakes his head. “Koyama is not going to be happy about the news,” he replies calmly. “But I don’t have anything else to report. Everything he fears is...apparently either natural occurrence or something he imagined.”   
  
Jin nods in understanding, but he still feels relief that he can trust his own advisors again. It’s a bearable thought that he can continue with this life without fear of the closest ally to him.   
  
“What did she make you do for your answer?” Jin asks him. He was the only one who’d received the barcode treatment. After asking around, the others had gone through very different trials to get to the heart of what they wanted. None of them really wanted to talk about it. Especially Tatsuya.   
  
Yamapi suddenly looks exhausted, he shakes his head. “I had to face some truths I didn’t want to admit to myself.”   
  
Jin watches him and Yamapi smiles but it doesn’t reach his eyes. He looks tired, like he’s been running away from something and has only just had to turn around and face it.   
  
“I love my king,” Yamapi tells him. “It’s just...maybe that’s not enough.”   
  
Jin sees the look in his eye and he knows not to press it. Whatever is going on with Yamapi, he’s nowhere near ready to face it despite being forced to at the Grove. He needs more time.   
  
Jin nods and Yamapi clearly seems uncomfortable with the subject so he changes it and looks around. “Where’s Ryo?”   
  
“With Ueda,” Yamapi says, noticeably relieved Jin dropped it. He leans his elbows on the edge of the ship deck and watches as the ship approaches the island. Yamapi shakes his head. “Natural incidents shaping the world—with that in mind, we don’t know how the world is going to end up then.”   
  
Jin agrees. But it sounds almost peaceful when he thinks about it like that. The world has always been unpredictable and dangerous, he never thought otherwise. But to hear all those things were not caused by the advisors, to finally know for sure that the advisors weren’t thinking up this big conspiracy—that was likely something Koyama had been worried about also. Well, it makes Jin feel a little better.   
  
He _can_ trust the advisors.   
  
It makes him feel happy, like this is the one thing that’s gone right with his reign as a king. He may not be a normal king, he knows that, but this is normal. This is going right. He can trust his advisors, they have his best interests at heart and they’re not conspiring to hide shit from him like the Moon Islands or Vena.   
  
“You know what,” Yamapi says, breaking Jin out of his thoughts as the two of them notice Ryo and Tatsuya leave the cabins. “I think that rabbit actually broke Ryo’s heart.”   
  
Jin glances at Tatsuya and he doesn’t really get him. Tatsuya had made Taguchi stay on the ship because he feared something happening to him on the Emerald Grove and yet Nishikido Ryo is the one he sleeps with. As far as Jin can tell, Tatsuya hasn’t once touched Taguchi.   
  
Jin hums. “Ryo’s softer than he lets on,” he admits quietly. “Few people know he’s actually a marshmallow.”   
  
Yamapi laughs and Jin turns to him. “Well,” he says. “I’ll trust you to look after him.”   
  
“Always,” Yamapi promises.   
  
They dock on Sunshine Bay where Koyama is there, waiting for Yamapi and Ryo. Jin stays on the ship and watches as the two of them get off the ship to bow to their king. Koyama waves at Jin as well as the ship pulls away once again. It’s a peaceful journey all the way back home. For the first time in a long time, Jin feels at peace.   
  
Like a missing puzzle piece has finally been put in place and his faith in his advisors is restored. Things are good. Things are great. The world is at peace in Jin’s eyes, and at last, the unease is settled and resolved.   
  
By the time they’re almost at the Realm of Mars, Jin appears behind Kazuya. The boy is out on the main deck and watching as their ship approaches the docks. Jin wraps his arms around the other and rests his chin on Kazuya’s shoulder, inhaling the intoxicating scent that is his little pirate captain.   
  
“We should do something,” Jin finds himself saying as his fingers drum against Kazuya’s stomach. “Later.”   
  
“What do you have in mind?” Kazuya asks, carefully mindful that they’re approaching the island and people can see them.   
  
Jin kisses his ear and looks at the castle in the distance. His advisors are waiting for him, he can feel the slight buzzing in his head calling him. He hugs Kazuya close to him and takes a deep breath. “Tomorrow night,” he says. “I’ll meet you on Amai.”   
  
Kazuya brushes his hand over Jin’s and Jin kisses the back of his neck. He thinks of the purple sunrise they’d seen years ago. He wants to see it again. With Kazuya.   
  
They sneak back inside to steal a few kisses before the ship finally hits the docks. When they feel the telltale bump, they reluctantly pull away and Kazuya rests his head on Jin’s shoulder.   
  
“Tomorrow night,” Jin promises, kissing Kazuya’s hair. “I’ll meet you there.”   
  
Kazuya nods and as Jin’s pulling himself away and heading to the door, Kazuya turns around and looks at him.   
  
“Hey,” he calls.   
  
Jin turns around and Kazuya’s smile is bright as the sun. “Marry me again,” he demands playfully.   
  
They’ve docked. Jin knows the advisors are waiting and Koki will follow him back to the castle as always, but he sees no harm in making them wait a little longer as he bowls Kazuya over with another kiss and picks the boy up. Kazuya laughs all the way back to the captain's quarters where Jin makes sure the door is locked for at least half an hour.   
  
\-   
  
The morning after Jin’s return, Jin finds himself sitting on his throne as usual. The advisors hum faintly in satisfaction and it seems normal. The bright morning sunlight filters in through the stained glass windows of the throne room and Jin glances at Josh, who is seated to his side. Koki is sitting on the steps as he always is. Nothing seems out of the ordinary until Jin spots them.   
  
Guards. The ones from the dungeons. They have no business in the throne room at all and Jin stands as he witnesses them coming through the nobles, making a beeline right for the throne.   
  
Jin frowns. “What’s the meaning of this?” he asks.   
  
One guard in green isn’t a cause for concern—maybe something went wrong in the dungeons. What is a cause for concern is twenty of them. All of them uniformed with eyes ahead and looking straight at Jin.   
  
The advisors in his head are silent as the grave.   
  
“Akanishi Jin,” the head guard announces as Koki and Josh slowly rise to their feet as well. “You are under arrest under the new law and will henceforth be taken into custody immediately.”   
  
“WHAT?!” Koki shouts. Josh goes pale and Jin barely has the time to react before the guards grab his arms.   
  
The nobles are all whispering amongst each other, some are taking pictures, and others are just staring in shock. Jin’s breath hitches and he looks back to see the advisors are motionless.   
  
They saw this coming. Jin feels something cold grip down his spine as he realises they sold him out.   
  
“Koki!” Jin screams as he tries to fight against the guards. “Koki, go!”   
  
Koki rushes for the guards. He tries to grab the one holding Jin and lands a good punch in the guards face before the others throw him off.   
  
“Koki go!” Jin shouts at him. “Run!”   
  
Koki isn’t listening, he gets back up and tries to fight the guards but there’s too many of them. Jin sees one of them hit his Joker in the face. Koki falls to the floor and curls up as the other guards start kicking to keep him down.   
  
“Koki!” Jin yelps, he tries to fight but they’re too strong and they drag him out of the throne room.   
  
As he’s being dragged out, finally he hears the advisors whisper in his head. But it’s too quiet, almost muffled, like someone talking into a pillow and it’s the first time they’ve ever been so muffled in his mind.   
  
‘ _...e...kn...w._ ’   
  
\-   
  
Sitting up in the lookout post of the pirate ship, Ueda Tatsuya notes the skies growing darker with the approaching night. He’d spotted Kazuya a couple of minutes ago, sneaking off the ship as if he thought no one would notice him running off to meet Jin on Amai Hill.   
  
The rabbit leans back in the post and looks out over the sea. He watches the waves roll, the way the moonlight reflects the ripples in the water. His ears twitch slightly and he glances at the castle, far away on the other side of the island.   
  
“ _Bound endlessly_ ,” he sings to himself, eyes flicking back to the ocean. “ _Shut up in a box. Stuck inside it forever_ …”   
  
They throw Jin in his cell and shut the doors with a clang. Panicked and scared, Jin jumps up and grabs the iron bars. He shakes them desperately and looks around. Kazuya. He’s out there, he’s going to Amai Hill and he doesn’t know what’s happened.   
  
Someone’s going to go after him. Someone’s going to hurt him.   
  
Jin stills when he realises the dungeon is a lot warmer than usual. There’s only one explanation for the lack of the usual cold: The vampires are gone.   
  
The realisation makes Jin pale and his breath catch in his throat. The advisors sent the vampires after Kazuya.   
  
“No!” he screams and cries as he pulls on the bars. “No! Kazuya, no!”   
  
“ _Yes_ ,” Tatsuya sings on. “ _The light will definitely shine through_ …”   
  
Dark settles in as Kazuya makes it to the top of Amai Hill. He stands on the grass and looks over the view he and Jin had seen all those years ago when the sky turned purple with the sunrise.   
  
Just the thought makes him smile.   
  
He sits on the grass and waits for Jin. The other is a little late and Kazuya wishes he’d brought an extra jacket as he pulls his knees up to his chest and watches the ocean...   
  
Unaware that Jin isn’t coming. That they’re all in danger. That the chill he feels is not the night air, but the vampires that are right behind him.   
  
Back on the ship, Tatsuya looks down when he sees Koki stumbling onto the ship.   
  
“Help,” Koki squeaks. He’s covered in blood and beaten within an inch of his life, but he’s frantic as Taguchi and Nakamaru rush out to grab him and find out what happened.   
  
Tatsuya turns his gaze back to the castle. His ears twitch and he can hear Jin crying. It’s like a distant echo but he hears him.   
  
“ _Sadistic love_ ,” he sings to himself before jumping down from the lookout post. He needs to find Kazuya.   
  
The judge bangs his gavel down and Jin looks up. He glances at the chains around his wrists and pulls experimentally on one, the chain jingles and the sound echoes in his ears—like a reminder, a taunt, that it will be there for a long, long time.   
  
“The court rules,” the judge announces in a clear, booming voice. “The court finds the accused, King Akanishi Jin, guilty of all crimes. The sentencing is as follows...”   
  
_Kazuya_ , Jin thinks. _What did they do to you_?   
  
“Exiled for sins committed against the realm,” the judge says and Jin feels his blood run cold at the thought of that. _Exile_   
  
“To be carried out in the next few years,” the judge continues and slams his gavel down again. “Dismissed.”   
  
They take him away again. Jin hears the chains clink as he walks away. He feels the eyes of his subjects, accusing and angry. “How could you?” the stares all say. The advisors are whispering in his head but Jin can’t hear them. They’re muffled and he can’t figure out why.   
  
They throw him back in his cell and slam the doors shut. Jin once again notes the absence of the cold. The vampires went after Kazuya. He curls up in his cell and tries to breathe but he can’t. He glances at his pinky finger and shivers.   
  
They took away his ring.   
  
The moon settles high in the sky with the darkness of night offering no comfort to the crying prisoner.   
  
If only he could have seen above his grates, he’d have seen the pirate ship with its flag lowered in mourning, sailing away and escaping before the advisors could get them too.   
  
Tatsuya’s singing travels with the wind, a promise that does not reach Jin’s ears.   
  
“ _We’ll come back for you_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We hope you enjoyed the second instalment of King of Pirates! As you may have figured out by now, there are a lot of hints and connections to how things happened in real life (from before KAT-TUN debuted to the part where Jin was pulled out of the group) and there are so many connections, metaphors between how things worked out in real life and how things work out here in the AU world that putting it all together and trying to figure out where my brain started doing this and where it came out would take a very long time.   
> So there will be a post coming later to explain all the concepts and what to look for or look at if you're trying to understand how this world works. I have received feedback that this might be necessary and so this will happen.

**Author's Note:**

> Part One of however many I end up writing of this story ;) Spread the love!


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